Neighbours save the day at Kareponia

An elderly couple, originally from Whangarei, who are in the process of renovating their house at Kareponia, on State Highway 10 east of Awanui, may well have neighbours to thank for the fact that they still have a home.

The Kaitaia Fire Brigade dispatched a crew on Sunday night after a fire began taking hold at the front of the house, but neighbours, armed with shovels and a fish bin they used to carry water, had almost extinguished the flames by the time the appliance arrived.

Damage around the front door appeared to be little more than superficial, although fire investigation officer Gary Beer said yesterday that there could be more significant damage under the tin roof. He believed the fire had started in a wheelie bin close to the front door, and had little doubt that it had been deliberately lit.

"It smells of a suspicious fire to me," he said.

Those suspicions were reinforced by the fact that there were small areas of burnt grass and garden plants some distance from the main site of the fire, which he believed would not have been damaged as a result of the flames at the front door.

Detective Sergeant Trevor Beatson said police were also treating the fire as suspicious, and he had no doubt that someone in the tiny community would know who was responsible.

"This is not the sort of place someone from outside the community would stumble on," he said.

He had spoken to the elderly owners, who were out of the district over the weekend, saying they had been renovating the house over several years, and had not had insurance.

"The neighbours certainly did a good job," he added.

"By all accounts it looked pretty hopeless when they began fighting the fire, but they stuck at it and prevented a lot more damage being done."

Anyone who had any information was urged to contact Detective Sergeant Beatson at the Kaitaia police station, phone (09) 408-6500, or Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555-111.