Beach fires out but gas barbecues OK

Tinder dry conditions have forced Tararua District Council to impose a total fire ban on all beaches and surrounding public land.

Lianne Simpkin, council's communications manager, said the ban did not include gas barbecues.

The coastal areas and the northern part of Tararua are especially dry and this is not expected to change throughout the Christmas and New Year period.

A restricted fire season has been declared for the remainder of Tararua. This means anyone wanting to light a fire in the open has to obtain a permit from council to do so.

Ms Simpkin said although the grass looked green it was very dry underneath and the potential for grass fires was high.

"It is timely to remind people if you light a fire and it gets away from you the responsibility for all costs involved to fight the fire, and any damage caused to other people's property, falls to you.

"In some cases this can amount to hundreds of thousands of dollars."

Ms Simpson said the "best advice" was to wait until the restricted fire season was lifted before being tempted to light fires.

"The situation is monitored each day by rural fire officers and will be reviewed in the new year," she said.

Whereas there is no fee to obtain a fire permit, holding one does not exempt the holder from responsibility for any damage caused by a fire that gets out of control.

As a rule of thumb, the council does not allow fire permits for fires likely to contain large logs or tree stumps.