Three fires in a week, Northland community urged to be vigilant

Northland firefighters at the scene of Tuesday's vegetation fire, which investigators believe was deliberately lit. Photo / Courtesy of Paparoa Volunteer Fire Brigade

A resilient gecko was alive amongst the ashes of a large vegetation fire in Waiotira which investigators believe had been deliberately lit.

Tuesday's blaze on Mititai Rd was the third suspicious fire in the past week in the rural area, about 20km south of Maungakaramea and a 45-minute drive from Whangārei.

Locals were encouraged to be alert to any suspicious behaviour and report it to police or Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) immediately.

It took five brigades, supported briefly by a helicopter, more than four hours to bring Tuesday's blaze under control as it tore through 1.5ha of wilding pine and pampas grass.

Maungakaramea Voluntary Rural Fire Force was first on the scene, followed by Whangārei Station crews.

A photo of the gecko still alive despite getting caught in a large vegetation fire in Waiotira on Tuesday. Photo / Courtesy of Paparoa Volunteer Fire Brigade

FENZ assistant area commander for Whangarei/Kaipara Graeme Quensell said the fire's rural location meant water to extinguish the blaze was "a bit of an issue".

However, the officer in charge called in further appliances and tankers from Paparoa, Dargaville, and Ruakākā volunteer brigades to provide an abundance of water to fight the fire.

After a long stretch in light winds, firefighters were able to contain the blaze to the point where it was safe to let it burn itself out, Quensell said.

"It's one of the tactics we can use with vegetation fires. Let it burn out as long as it's not endangering anything."

He said the fire had burned up to Mititai Rd which created a natural fire break.

Fire investigators were called in to examine the cause of the blaze as "vegetation doesn't just catch fire", Quensell said.

Despite recent rain, vegetation remained "pretty dry" partly due to strong winds in Northland – making conditions "quite flammable".

Fire investigator Craig Bain said the fire had been similar to a separate one on Friday night among pampas grass near a railway yard in the area.

He called for people who witness any suspicious activity in Waiotira to record important details and immediately contact police and/or FENZ.

"Being so remote, it's going to take some time to get our resources out there."

Bain said crews were lucky there were light winds on Tuesday so the blaze didn't spread into a new forestry plantation nearby.