A mystery cloud in Orange County that was spotted throughout the tri-state area Tuesday evening is stirring up some debate about what it could be.

The massive white plume was spotted by News 12 viewers, who sent in images of the cloud, from as far as Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

The Orange County Office of Emergency Management traced it to the skies above the Middletown-Minisink area and says it was noted by their office at approximately 7:45 p.m.

OEM officials say there were no reports of fires or an explosion at that time and therefore explain it as a naturally-occurring yet “unusually low cloud.”

Pramilla Malick is the chair of the local environmental group Protect Orange County. She says she saw the plume and tracked it to Competitive Power Ventures, a power plant in Wawayanda, not far from the Middletown-Minisink area.

“It’s definitely CPV,” says Malick. If you look at the images we’ve caught in the past of their plumes, it’s exactly the same.”

Malick, who has long opposed the construction and operation of the natural gas power plant citing health and environmental concerns, sent News 12 multiple images showing what appears to be similarly shaped plumes of billowing smoke emanating from stacks at the facility.

"Our concern is what’s in those plumes, and what’s being emitted when we don’t see it. Those emissions are 24/7," says Malick.

Commenters on a News 12 post about the sighting also stated they are skeptical that it was a cloud, but others say they believe it was.

County officials say there’s no evidence suggesting a link to CPV, but Malick says her group did air quality tests near the site that spiked to unsafe levels when the plume was seen.

A representative for the power plant says the plume did not originate from the facility.

"[CPV] is the lowest emitting fossil generator in the state of NY. We are asked to operate around the clock to help maintain a reliable system. Since we started operating, we haven’t had a single exceedance in emissions and have passed every inspection by the NY DEC," says Tom Rumsey, senior vice president of CPV sustainability and external affairs. "Our emissions are recorded on a minute-by-minute basis and submitted to our regulators. While some may choose to ignore those facts, we have over 5 years of operations and associated data to support those points, it isn’t speculative."

A representative for the DEC says there were no complaints tied to CPV on Tuesday and that emissions previously seen from the facility are "steam plumes."

Officially, whatever it was – remains a mystery.