Clover Park suspicious fire: Car seen at property hours before blaze, possible links to second fire

Three buildings were destroyed in the blaze on March 7. Photo / NZME

A suspicious blaze that destroyed three new homes under construction in Auckland could be linked to another fire in the area, a fire investigator says.

CCTV footage shared with fire investigators has captured a car reversing down the driveway of the Derrimore Heights property two hours before the fire was reported in the early hours of March 7.

Three properties were destroyed and sources have told the Herald spilled petrol was smelt on the top floor of a fourth home that escaped major damage.

Specialist fire investigator Brad Joseph believes the blaze is deliberate because electricity had not yet been installed at the new homes.

He said he was engaged by Ando Insurance to carry out a fire investigation for a neighbouring Redoubt Rd subdivision that backs on to the Derrimore Heights site.

The subdivision, also under construction, had "very limited" damage to its fencing and cladding, Joseph said.

His report concluded that indications suggest there is a deliberately set fire at the Derrimore Heights property and it had spread on to the neighbouring property.

"To our knowledge there was no power to the site, so that eliminates any potential electrical failure. It can't be anything else other than a deliberately lit fire or electrical and we can eliminate electrical."

A source told the Herald petrol was spilled at one property. Photo / Supplied

Joseph said he was "not surprised at all" that there had been reports of fuel being detected at the site.

He said another fire that happened three weeks earlier in "very similar circumstances", and only 2km away, could be linked.

"We're only connecting the dots. Two kilometres away, three weeks between the fires, both [are] building sites, [there are] similarities there."

A fire investigator for the Derrimore Heights property did not wish to comment.

Joseph said he obtained CCTV footage from residents on the street as part of his inquiries.

"[It] confirms that a vehicle goes into that property in the wee hours of the morning for about 30 minutes."

He said the car was seen reversing down the driveway at around 2.57am on March 7 and left around 30 minutes later, at 3.28am.

Emergency services responded to the blaze just after 5am.

"There wouldn't be a lot of items in that building, there wouldn't be furniture ... it would really be a shell so it takes a lot longer to burn because there isn't a lot of fuel to fuel the fire," said Joseph.

"That's probably why there's been a two-hour delay before anybody has even noticed anything."

Police are treating the blaze as suspicious. Photo / NZME

Joseph said the CCTV footage had been shared with the fire investigator for the Derrimore Heights property, but he was unsure if police had obtained it.

Police did not comment on the footage or whether there were possible links to a second fire.

"Police continue to investigate, alongside Fenz, a suspicious fire in Derrimore Heights, Clover Park, which took place on Monday 7 March.

"Police are following all available lines of inquiry, however as the investigation is ongoing, we have no further comment as this time."

'Devastating consequences'

Neighbours told the Herald people were seen taking rubbish bins filled with the charred remains of the homes away from the construction site.

Rubbish bins could be seen placed around the site, which is protected by a locked gate.

Residents said construction appeared to be almost complete on the new two-storey homes, and parties had been coming to view them in recent weeks.

No one was in the homes at the time and there were no injuries.

Fire and Emergency said the fire "could have had devastating consequences".

Auckland Council had granted resource consent for "three new standalone two storey dwellings" to be built at the address.

A neighbour across the street, Michelle Nguyen, said her family awoke to beeping of car horns before seeing a "huge orange cloud" on March 7.

Nguyen said her family were worried they were going to have to evacuate as the blaze grew, and they could hear windows smashing.

"It was horrific to see," she said.

"I gotta say, we were quite scared."