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News and Notices, 7 December 2011
Karikari fire now all but out Heavy rain over the weekend eased the work of firefighters
Wind
change saved forest 3.12.11
A Western Southland farmer could have lost about $300,000 of
trees in a fire on Thursday had the wind direction been different, a fire
officer said. Southern Rural Fire Authority deputy
principal officer Elton Smith said about a hectare of pine trees was burnt in
the fire on a Wether Hill farm, north of Ohai, after it spread from a controlled
burn off of bracken. The controlled burn was started about lunch time, but the
wind direction changed...
Another
fire near Doc land 3.12.11
The Department of Conservation is investigating a
rubbish fire lit on an Earnscleugh orchard yesterday, within 1km of Doc land,
during a restricted fire season.
Positives
come from Glen Dene fire 3.12.11
Glen Dene Station owner Richard Burdon said while he was
still "horrified" about the extent of damage to reserve land caused by
a permitted burn-off on his property two months ago, some positives had come out
of the fire that would benefit the district in the future. The fire was lit on
September 23 to clear bracken fern on Glen Dene but was fanned by a
northwesterly wind and....
Fire
ban after blaze 1.12.11
A fire in Opua at the weekend is being treated as
arson. The blaze started in Franklin Rd at about 4.30pm on a bank below Opua
School and then jumped across the road. It was fanned by gusts of strong winds
and the dry scrub was well alight when firefighters arrived but they soon had it
under control. Police would like to speak....
Playing
with fire 1.12.11
Seven large scrub fires during the past week have
prompted firefighters to urge more caution. One on Monday afternoon threatened
300 hectares of bush. A restricted fire season comes into force today, the first
official day of summer, and requires permits for most fires except traditional
cooking fires on private property and approved gas-fired cookers. The permits
are free. The latest fires should be a warning for people to be careful as
summer gets under way, Auckland Council deputy principal rural fire officer
Scott Marchant says....
Flyer
to snuff out fires beside track 1.12.11
The underbelly of the Kingston Flyer locomotive is to
be fitted with specially designed water spraying equipment to put out small
fires on the railway track during summer. Several Kingston firefighters tended
to several small fires that erupted at the start of the train's track at
Kingston yesterday. The fires were easily contained and not serious, but Peter
Ottley, of the Kingston brigade, said they were an ongoing problem, especially
during the hot summer months. "It's just the sparks out of the fire box –
it's pretty dry at the moment. Fortunately we were close by." The fires
were "just patchy small fires" and the company was addressing the
problem. Managing director David Bryce said....
Bodies
found in chopper in Far North 1.12.11
A group of five students say they are lucky to be
alive after facing massive flames and flying debris during a scrub fire on the
KaniKari Peninsula last night.
Horror
blaze, then chopper crash 1.12.11
The wreckage from a missing helicopter that was
fighting a Far North blaze has been found.
Wreckage
found of helicopter missing after blaze 1.12.11
A fisherman was tossed into the sea overnight to
search for a missing helicopter which crashed while surveying a raging fire in
the Far North.
Smoked
'em all but one 30.11.11
Marlborough's rural firefighters have shown they are
among the best in the country, coming second at the national Rural Fire Force
championships this month. It was the second time a Marlborough team has competed
in the championships and the first time a team has competed at a championships
outside the region, team manager Tim Vertelman said. The team came fourth at its
last attempt when the championships were held in Marlborough in 2008. This time
round it took...
Re-lit
fire sparks warning 30.11.11
A fire that was re-ignited by warm winds on Monday, two weeks
after it was lit as a controlled burn, has prompted a request from fire
authorities to ensure fires are safely put out.
The fire burnt on a section of farmland off Puketitiri Rd and covered an area of
about 100m.....
Weekend
sparks Far North firebug fear 28.11.11
A firebug is feared on the loose in the Kaipara after
four suspiciously lit, early morning scrub fires within about an hour threatened
lives and put property at risk in a small Northland community.
Far
North wood mill goes up in flames 28.11.11
Firefighters are fortunate to have escaped without
injury when a large silo collapsed during a fire at a Far North wood mill last
night.
Firefighters battle scrub blaze north of Auckland 28.11.11
Firefighters are battling an out of control scrub fire
tonight north of Auckland. The fire is raging in the Ahuroa Valley near Puhoi. A
Fire Communications spokeswoman said 40 firefighters were either at the scene or
on their way. The fire covers an area of about 300 sqm.
Firebug sets string of fires in Kaipara 26.11.11
A firebug has been at work in the Kaipara District,
setting a string of scrub fires along State Highway 12. Fire Service shift
manager Jaron Phillips says the first suspicious flare-up was at Paraore, just
outside Dargaville. It was spotted soon after 2am. "Continuing further
north up State Highway 12, we've been finding fires up until 4am, it's a series
of five fires that appear to be deliberately lit," says Mr Phillips.
Fire
crews stamp out blaze flare-ups 25.11.11
Firefighters battling Northland's biggest blaze in
many years hope to start scaling down their operation today. For the first time
since the fire started on Monday and spread into White Cliffs forest, near
Horeke in South Hokianga, its area did not increase yesterday, remaining at
345ha.
The two helicopters still on site were not required and....
Partial
win for farmer over costly forest fire 23.11.11
A Glenhope lifestyle farmer being sued for more than
$1 million following a forest fire has had a partial win in an Appeal Court case
over public liability insurance cover. However, the judgment that Tower
Insurance must pay up to $200,000 won't be enough to cover the claims. Nelson
Forest Ltd is suing Stephen Garnett and Three Tuis Ltd (TTL) in a High Court
action for $484,853 for losses caused by the fire. The New Zealand Fire Service
Commission and the Waimea Rural Fire Committee are also suing for $602,861 for
the cost of extinguishing the fire....
Massive
fire forces evacuations About 100 firefighters are still battling a pine
plantation blaze in a Far North pine plantation but it is now under control
after threatening homes and forcing evacuations overnight.
Fanned by a strong northwesterly wind the blaze had spread through White Cliffs
forest at Utakura, near the historic South Hokianga settlement of Horeke.
Each time one area of the fire was suppressed by five helicopters using monsoon
buckets, it would jump to another....
Pine
plantation ablaze in Far North 21.11.11
Five helicopters with monsoon buckets and firefighters
on the ground have been fighting a blazing pine plantation in the Far North this
afternoon. The fire is spread across a 350 metre front near the southern
coastline of the Hokianga Harbour, said a spokesman for the Auckland/Northern
Fire Communications Centre, Scott Osmond. Houses in the historic Horeke
settlement about two kilometres away were thought to be under threat earlier,
and at least one was evacuated.....