Fire rips through development site, destroying small building

Fire destroyed two portacabins on a bare section on Fusion Rd in Botany Junction this afternoon. Photo / Russell Phillips

A suspicious fire ripped through a bare section and destroyed a temporary display building in East Auckland today.

The fire started just after 2pm and large flames were up to 12 metres high.

The fire was at a 6m x 3m building placed on a section on Fusion Rd, opposite Ormiston Hospital in Botany Junction.

Worker Russell Phillips spotted the flames from his nearby office building.

"It certainly made a lot of smoke," he said.

"The black smoke itself was pretty impressive. It probably went up a couple of hundred feet."

He walked closer to the scene and watched as a number of appliances arrived to battle the blaze.

The building, which he believed to be a temporary building site building, was completely destroyed.

Fire and Emergency NZ shift manager Daniel Nicholson said they received numerous calls about the fire. It was being treated as suspicious, he said.

A police spokesperson said police were assisting Fire and Emergency NZ and inquiries were ongoing.