Houses are being evacuated as firefighters battle a blaze in the Canterbury High Country this evening.
The fire is covering 50ha of land near Lake Pukaki, a spokeswoman for Fire and Emergency New Zealand (Fenz) said.
Fire crews from Twizel, Lake Tekapo and Ōmarama responded to the blaze after being called out about 2.30pm.
Crews arrived to find “multiple slash piles and scrub” on fire, the spokeswoman said.
![Firefighters are battling a blaze covering 50ha near Lake Pukaki, a spokeswoman for Fire and Emergency New Zealand (Fenz) said. Photo / NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi](https://www.nzherald.co.nz/resizer/v2/QZPGDUKB45BFNK74LIEQ5PP7HA.jpg?auth=04f7bea031bfe34efbec34c3126a76b9e0a7308d307395a8b1bf8e14d817db86&width=16&height=9&quality=70&smart=true)