KEY POINTS:
A week after a derelict freezing works blazed in a suspicious fire, firefighters were still pouring water onto a mountain of debris last night.
The old Southdown Freezing Works near Penrose on the southern outskirts of Auckland, burned fiercely for several hours last Saturday in a spectacular blaze firefighters said was one of the biggest in Auckland for many years.
Yesterday a meeting of high level fire chiefs decided it was still not safe to pull out of the freezing works because of the hot spots at the bottom of blackened piles.
On Friday, hot spots were still having water poured onto them and yesterday a sole fire appliance remained at the scene, monitoring the blackened debris and occasionally pouring water onto the blackened debris.
Aerial pictures of the fire showed "mountains and mountains of rubble", fire communications centre shift manager, Scott Osmond said.
More than 100 firefighters worked in shifts to bring it under control but struggled to get to the seat of the fire because of the danger of falling debris and unstable and unsafe floors.
The fire was thought to be suspicious but fire investigators said because of the damage, the cause may never be found.
Firefighters may consider leaving the site tomorrow and handing it back to the owners.
- NZPA
