Three fire companies contained a petroleum-based rubbish fire that released a spectacular black plume of smoke at Ke'ehi Small Boat Harbor just before lunchtime yesterday.

Honolulu Fire Department engine companies were dispatched at 11:28 a.m. and had the fire under control at 11:41 a.m., but the debris continued to smolder, fire Capt. Terry Seelig said.

Firefighters used their new compressed-air foam system to control the fire, fueled by discarded fiberglass boat materials, Seelig said.

"The fire was mainly fiberglass composition, which is petroleum-based and produces a lot of black smoke and a lot of heat," Seelig said.

The compressed-air foam system "is not going to use as much water," he said. "We're right on the edge of the harbor and we don't want the byproducts of the fire carried into the harbor. We want to minimize the environmental impact."

There was no immediate word on what started the fire.

The Fire Department did not make a damage estimate because the discarded material was considered worthless, Seelig said.