Large fire closes Whangārei Mountain Bike Club tracks

Whangārei Mountain Bike Club Ben Haseden looks on as firefighters battle the blaze on Abbey Caves Rd. Photo/Tania Whyte

A mountain bike club run by volunteers may have to foot the cost of repairing part of its tracks in Whangārei that were destroyed by a fire that tore through regenerated pines.

Fire crews from Whangārei, Onerahi, Kamo and Hikurangi were called to Abbey Caves Rd about 4.30pm on Saturday after the fire got hold of pine trees on land owned by the Whangārei District Council.

Four helicopters helped bring the fire, in warm conditions with a moderate southwesterlies, under control in about two hours but crews returned to the scene yesterday morning to dampen down hot spots.

The cause of the fire which started on the side of the road and burnt through 3ha of pine trees is unknown at this stage.

Fire and Emergency New Zealand is appealing for information that may assist in its investigation.

The blaze forced the closure of tracks used and maintained by the Whangārei Mountain Bike Club's 80 members and president Ben Haseden said the worst damage was of the beginner's trail.

"That part of the trail will remain closed for three days and after that we'll assess the damage and try and work out with whether we'll need to engage a contractor or clear the tracks ourselves."

Haseden said about 3km of the 20km bike trail has been damaged, excluding the clubrooms further up the track.

"The tracks have been fairly well-established over the last 15 years. Our volunteers have been growing a lot of natives over old pine forest and we've been able to rejuvenate the areas where there were high gorse and pampas."

Firefighters at the Abbey Caves Rd fire that tore through 3ha of pine trees. Photo/Tania Whyte

Deputy principal rural fire officer Northland, Wayne Martin, said quick action by fire crews from Onerahi and Kamo that were the first on the scene removed the initial threat on two houses.

Whangārei firefighters were attending to an escaped control burnout on Harris Rd in Glenbervie when the Abbey Caves Rd fire was notified to emergency services.

He said both fires were a timely reminder for people to be careful when lighting fires in this weather.

"We're monitoring conditions week by week and if it dries out quickly, we'll think about putting fire restrictions in place which means people will have to apply for a permit to light fires.

"We've had a relatively dry winter and there are already water restrictions in place in Kaikohe. The ground is drier so people need to be vigilant and safe when lighting fires," Martin said.

He said people need to be mindful of the time volunteer firefighters spent away from their families.

MetService meteorologist Andy Best said temperatures in Northland were about 10C cooler than areas between Gisborne and the Wairarapa, as well as the lower South Island.

A warm air mass, channelled over New Zealand by a big high pressure system parked over the Tasman Sea, is driving temperatures in many places like Wanaka, Queenstown and the central North Island above 30C.