Rarely is it the firefighters themselves that are the first to notice a fire, but Thursday was one of those days in Ogden.

According to a press release from the Ogden City Fire Department received on Friday, around 3 p.m. Thursday, an Ogden Fire Department crew traveling near 2900 Wall Avenue was concerned by what was described as “unusual smoke color and volume venting from an industrial exhaust stack at Alphia, a pet food manufacturing facility.”

“After contacting an on-site forklift operator, crews were escorted inside to consult with a manager and discovered an active fire inside a biscuit-baking oven,” the release said. “The smoke was being carried through the oven’s ducting, which delayed detection.”

Following this discovery, the plant was evacuated and additional resources were sought to fight the fire, which ended up being a bit of a challenge.

“The concealed fire extended within the oven and connected ductwork and involved product that had migrated to a storage silo, complicating access and suppression,” the release said. “Interior teams operated in zero visibility and faced significant ventilation challenges in the oven room. … Firefighters battled the fire for approximately 4.5 hours, achieving fire control around 7:30 p.m. Crews then worked an additional hour to secure fire stop around 8:30 p.m.”

According to the release, the Ogden City Fire Department was also assisted by the Weber Fire District, Riverdale Fire Department and Washington Terrace Fire Department.

The Ogden City Fire Department is coordinating to find a cause of the fire, which caused an estimated $3 million in damages.

No injuries were reported and no further information is available at this time.

This marks the second major fire reported at the Alphia plant this year.

In March, an early-morning fire caused around $100,000 in damage.