Rain blamed for Four Square blaze

Heavy rain and a leaky roof have been identified as the likely cause of the fire that destroyed the Opononi Four Square store on Sunday night.

Fire investigator Craig Bain, who spent Sunday night at the scene then returned on Monday to comb through the ruins, said water getting through the roof, which may have been lifted by Sunday's strong winds, may have caused arcing. A brief but torrential burst of rain fell shortly before the fire was noticed.

Store owner Paresh Patel saw smoke wafting from the roof as he was locking up at 7.45pm. He ran next door to the Opononi Hotel to raise the alarm, then could only watch as flames raced through the business he had owned for than a year.

The hotel suffered only minor damage, thanks to a patron who climbed on to the roof with a garden hose to keep the flames at bay until help arrived, a double firewall built after the last big blaze, and the efforts of about 25 firefighters. The historic South Hokianga Community Hall, across a narrow driveway, was undamaged.

A visibly distraught Mr Patel, who moved from Auckland last year with his family, was comforted by relatives and customers on Monday. He said he had already received many offers of help from the community.

Sue Leigh-Mackenzie, who owns the nearby Opononi Takeaways, said Mr Patel was devastated.

"You wouldn't get a can of beans out of there now," she said.

The "absolutely vicious" fire was fanned by a wind blowing straight off the beach, ripping through the building with alarming speed, flames leaping high into the air.

The firefighters did a "brilliant job" of saving the hotel and hall.

It was almost a case of history repeating itself, Mrs Leigh-Mackenzie said. A fire in the late 1950s destroyed the previous shop and hotel; that time only the hall survived.

Fire Service Muriwhenua area manager Allan Kerrisk said crews from Omapere, Rawene and Kaikohe fought the fire with water from the town supply and pumped from the harbour. They were relieved at midnight by a Whangarei crew, with local firefighters back early on Monday after a few hours' sleep. No one had been injured and no one lived in the building.

There were some concerns that the remains of the first floor office and balcony could collapse if the wind lifted again, but Four Square group manager Andrew Loeser said the loss was more than a building and groceries.

"It's a real hub, it's not just a shop," he said.

Both the building and its stock were insured.

The company was looking at all options, including an offer to use part of the hotel, to set up a temporary shop in the next few weeks. Long-term the company hoped to rebuild on the site.

The fire also melted 114 PO boxes. New Zealand Post confirmed yesterday that no mail had survived the fire, but the adjacent mail box had not been damaged.

Until the shop's future is settled the nearest postal services will be at Omapere, while the nearest grocery stores are at Omapere, Rawene and Waimamaku. Mail for Opononi PO box holders became available at the Omapere Post Centre as of yesterday, along with counter mail that would have been collected at Opononi. Opononi customers who collect mail at Omapere may be asked for identification, while any specific questions should go to 0800 501-501.