Grass fire at rivermouth

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

Firefighters were busy for about three hours on Saturday afternoon dealing with a grass fire at the mouth of the Waipaoa River. The fire was fanned into driftwood by strong winds.

Fire and Emergency NZ sent four appliances, including city and rural fire crews, to the scene.

The fire covered about 500 square metres and took about half-an-hour to bring under control, then another 2½ hours dampening down hot spots.

It was not clear how it started.