Fire bosses are stepping up patrols in the Far North as wildfires start breaking out again just weeks after one of the wettest winters on record.
Northern principal rural fire officer Myles Taylor said many people believed the fire danger was still low due to the wet winter.
"But it's drying out rapidly and we're starting to get break-outs again," he said.
On Monday night Rawene firefighters spent almost two hours battling a scrub fire at Waima which was heading towards a house. The cause was still being investigated but it was likely to have been started by a rubbish fire or burn-off.
As in previous years people were being caught out by not paying attention to the wind before lighting fires, Mr Taylor said. The spring equinox winds would last for at least another month.