Central Hawke's Bay fire: 35-hectare farm blaze continued to smoulder

A large grass fire near Takapau continued to smoulder on Friday after 35 hectares of tinder-dry farm paddocks and hay bales were engulfed.

State Highway 2 was closed for five hours after the blaze broke out about 2.40pm on Thursday.

A Fire and Emergency New Zealand spokesman said firefighters were then called back to the scene about 11.20pm on Thursday after a series of "flare-ups".

The spokesman said hay bales continued to smoulder, but no active firefighting was undertaken.

"There is no risk of the fire spreading."

A contractor working in the area continued monitoring the area on Friday afternoon in case of flare-ups.

Police helped farmers drive tractors off the paddocks as the fire advanced on Thursday.

"Minutes later the flames had reached the roadside and the fence battens were ablaze. The road disappeared under clouds of smoke," a witness said.

A plane, two helicopters and 16 fire appliances, plus a command vehicle, attended the fire.

State Highway 2 was closed for five hours after the blaze broke out about 2.40pm. Photo / Paul Taylor

Principal rural fire officer Trevor Mitchell said nobody was injured and no evacuations were undertaken.

An investigation into the fire is under way.

While this one is not believed to be suspicious, Hawke's Bay Fire and Emergency area commander Ken Cooper said a rise in suspicious fires in the tinder-dry region recently was of concern.

"Hawke's Bay at the moment has seen a significant rise in deliberately lit suspicious fires in rural and urban environments."

Cooper said FENZ and New Zealand Police were working with community groups to establish a cause of the incidents.

"We believe the urban fires are connected. We have a lot of cameras set up around the rural areas and are quite confident police will apprehend those responsible soon.

"The police have people of interest that they will speak to and a lot of rural properties have security cameras which help to piece together movements, which is what we're doing at the moment."

There were also security cameras being installed in forestry blocks around the region, he said.

A total fire ban is in place across Hawke's Bay, extending across the whole of the East Coast from East Cape to Takapau.

No outdoor fires, including burning braziers and incinerators, are allowed because of the increased fire danger.