Security footage from inside a Newmarket car park moments before a destructive blaze broke out shows a group of young teens - described in an incident report as “delinquent arsonists”- hanging out near the pile of rubbish.
Minutes before the fire erupts, a guard can be seen attempting to put the fire out by removing a number of mattresses from the area before calling emergency services.
Police said they were investigating the blaze at the Kings Square Apartment car park on Remuera Rd which forced hundreds out on the street on April 18.
It took authorities hours to control the flames. The incident compromised the building’s structural integrity, forcing shops to temporarily close.
Newmarket Business Association chief executive Mark Knoff-Thomas had told the Herald it was shocking what had happened, and the “malicious” fire had caused “millions worth of damage”.
The CCTV footage shows at 1.08pm a group of at least a dozen young teens were lingering around the rubbish pile by the lifts in the car park.
Around 1.21pm a security guard can be seen directing them to leave. About five or six come out from the corner not visible on the camera lens and make their way to the lifts.
Minutes later the security guard attempts to remove multiple mattresses from the corner before calling emergency services.
At 1.28pm a fiery glow can be seen in the right-hand corner of the frame.
The security guard has dubbed the group as “delinquent arsonists” in an incident report.
He said he first received the call from control at 1.05pm to move a group of teenagers from the basement.
When he arrived 15 minutes later he found a number of young people gathered near the rubbish area, playing on the mattresses, he said in the report.
“I asked them to immediately vacate the area.”
After the group left, he noticed a mattress had caught fire.
He attempted to put out the fire but was unsuccessful and it could mean “endangering himself”, he said.
“I attempted to move the mattresses out of the way to cut off the fuel source, while doing so some splashes of molten plastic landed on my left arm and hand causing painful burns.
“I had to pull back, I then rushed to my patrol car out back on the stand and grabbed the fire extinguisher. While there I spotted and flagged down Newmarket Security for assistance.”
When he returned to the site of the blaze, the fire had grown significantly in size and the fire extinguisher was not enough to slow it down, he said.
Later, firefighters took over the task.
The retail district’s business boss Knoff-Thomas had said the fire was started intentionally.
“We have reports of who did it. We have footage which shows perpetrators, captured on camera. We know who they are and police are investigating.”
About 145 apartments were left without running water or power as a result of the event, he said.
“Yesterday, I spoke to Deputy Mayor Desley Simpson and the council chief executive, they had a fantastic response. They were helping to arrange emergency housing options for affected residents. But the compliance safety officer looking at the damage took a really long time to make a decision,” Knoff-Thomas said.
“People were out on the streets, evacuated since 2pm, families with young children waiting outside, which is unacceptable.”
Eventually, people were let back inside the building, he said.
“But there is no running water or electricity. Some businesses inside the square are unable to operate. They have sustained structural damage, doors have been smashed in and broken. The area is still cordoned off,” Knoff-Thomas said.
“We have emergency housing on standby waiting to see the outcome of no running water and electricity.”
Apartment’s body corporate L&Y Holdings Limited’s Nada Zheng told the Herald apartments were still affected.
“The lifts are still not working at the moment. It is a problem for elderly people and medically dependent people. The building is still out of internet at the moment which affects nowadays people’s life such as those who work from home.
“The majority of areas of the building have power but some shops are still closed due to the electrical problem. Luckily, we got all the hot and cold water back end of last week. The fire security system is back in order. All the facility services are actually temporarily fixed to ensure health and safety and minimise loss.
“The building is currently fed on a huge generator for power supply. There is a lot of further work to be done. Our team and the contractors are working hard on it.”
There were still a lot of people who could not go back to their homes due to some services being unavailable, Zheng said.
“It’s malicious damage to the building and such a disaster to all the residents and the public.”
Knoff-Thomas had previously suggested there should be a youth facility in the busy central Auckland area.
“With housing intensification, more families are moving into the area which is good. But council and [the] private sector need to do something for the youth so they have somewhere to go for recreation.”
A police spokesperson confirmed that they were working with Fire and Emergency New Zealand (Fenz) to investigate the blaze, which they believed to be “suspicious”.
“There’s nothing further to add except to say that inquiries are under way.”
The fire damaged a beam that has potentially undermined shopfronts on the ground floor. Braces were installed by Fenz’s Urban Search and Rescue teams to keep the building structurally sound.
Witnesses told the Herald they heard explosion-like sounds as thick smoke covered the area within minutes.
Resident Georgina Fortes-Upoko said she was sitting in the courtyard at Newmarket station when she heard the alarm activate.
“Then I heard a big bang. All this smoke came out of the south side of the station where trains come from.”