Firefighters fighting a major fire in an Invercargill industrial storage facility on Bluff Road, said at 8.30pm this evening (9 Mar) that it is now contained.

Fire and Emergency Incident Controller Julian Tohiariki said crews will remain on the scene throughout the night to ensure the fire remains contained, before efforts to remove any remaining fire fuels inside the building are made in the morning.

"People may still see smoke coming from the area, and we want to let people in the path of the smoke plume know that it is not toxic - it is similar to the smoke from a vegetation fire," Tohiariki says.

"However, inhaling any smoke is hazardous to your health, so we encourage anyone encountering the smoke to stay indoors with their windows and doors closed."

At its peak, about 40 firefighters and nine fire trucks were actively fighting the fire, although this number has now reduced. 

The road closure on State Highway 1 will remain in place through until Friday morning.