REDWOOD CITY -- A stubborn scrap fire at a Redwood City junk yard was finally tamed by firefighters early Sunday after nearly a 24-hour battle among the smoldering tons of debris and discarded metal.

Authorities said the two-alarm fire was out by 6 a.m. Sunday. A crew was to remain on the scene to make sure there were not any smoldering embers.

The Redwood City Fire Department was dispatched around 8 a.m. Saturday to Sims Metal -- a scrap metal yard, located along the 600-block of Seaport Blvd. When firefighters arrived they saw the flames as well as a sea of smoke -- a column of smoke that could be seen by thousands of people across the South Bay.

"It smells really bad," said local resident Kevin Middleton. "It smells like burning plastic and stuff."

Fire crews called it a deep-seeded fire -- 100-feet wide, 30-feet high flames burning so far below a mound of shredded metal. To battle the flames, the yard's excavators were used to clear the way for tens of thousands of gallons of water and foam.

"These cars that go through the shredding have liquids and things like that taken out of them, but we are dealing with shredded car parts -- plastics, fibers things like that," said Redwood City Fire Chief Gerald Khulman.

Firefighters also had to battle the weather. Winds began whipping through the area at 11 a.m., forcing the thick smoke into Menlo Park, Southeast Redwood City and East Palo Alto.

"As I went though there earlier it was like fog that had a rubbery plastic smell to it," said Menlo Park Fire District Fire Chief Harold Schapelhouman.

Schapelhouman said 15,000 people received precautionary automated phone calls Saturday morning from the county's community alert notification system encouraging them to stay inside.

"I think people are heeding the recommended to go inside especially those with breathing problems, those with small children, the elderly, to close their windows to close their doors turn off the ventilation systems," Schapelhouman said.

But it was only an advisory; a shelter in place had not been issued.

There have been no reported injuries to civilians, yard workers or firefighters.