A blaze that destroyed a shed and contents including a four-wheel-drive and a boat on a rural property south of Kaitaia on Saturday afternoon should serve as a warning, Kaitaia's Chief Fire Officer Colin Kitchen said.
The building and its contents were well beyond saving by the time the first
appliance arrived, Mr Kitchen saying it appeared that flames from a rubbish fire in a drum close to the shed spread to the building while the owner was absent.
Three appliances responded to the alarm, but the crews could do little more than dampen down the remains.
Mr Kitchen said no fire, even those contained within a drum or incinerator, should be set closer than 10 metres to any building.
"There should always be a 10-metre zone, or this is what's likely to happen," he said.
