CHESHIRE firefighters are reassuring people that thick black smoke in the sky in Ellesmere Port.

Motorists on the M53 have been tweeting on social media after witnessing a large plume of smoke over the Stanlow oil refinery on Tuesday, June 19.

Some have reported it to the Environment Agency, Cheshire West and Chester Council are the region's MPs.

Businessman Adam Dandy tweeted his concerns.

Cheshire Fire & Rescue have just tweeted that the smoke is the result of a controlled burn.

The tweet reads: "If you can see flames or smoke in the sky over Ellesmere Port, there is a controlled burn at Stanlow."