Newmarket Station was evacuated as emergency services responded to a large rubbish fire in a basement carpark.
Video / Yiwei Hou, Amy Parr
Newmarket’s business association boss says up to nine youths may be behind what he described as a “malicious” blaze that forced hundreds out of their apartments, shops to be evacuated and caused millions worth of damage.
Association chief executive Mark Knoff-Thomas told the Herald there is CCTV footage from the carpark near the Newmarket train station in Auckland, which he says showed a group of eight or nine youths near the fire.
“It is shocking what’s happened. It has caused millions worth of damage,” he 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.”
The aftermath of the massive fire near Newmarket in a basement carpark.
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.
Emergency services on the scene in Auckland's Newmarket after a fire yesterday. Photo / Michael Craig
“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.”
Knoff-Thomas 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 enquiries are underway.”
Fire crews responding to the blaze in Newmarket.
Fenz yesterday told the Herald their crews were battling “a large rubbish fire”. RNZ reported the fire was started in a pile of rubbish in the carpark of Kings Square Apartments on Broadway.
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 go off.
“Then I heard a big bang. All this smoke came out of the south side of the station where trains come from.”
Pictures show the damage left in the wake of the fire.
A witness told the Herald he heard loud muffled explosions behind him as he was sitting in his car inside the carpark, ready to leave.
“I am pretty shaken. Around 1.30pm, I was walking back to my car. I was sitting inside speaking to someone on the phone.
“Then suddenly in the middle of the conversation, I heard four to five explosion sounds coming from behind me. I looked up in the rearview mirror and I saw big flames, the ceiling was moving, there was thick black smoke and dust started falling off.”
A resident of an apartment on station square said they evacuated after the fire alarm went off. The glass doors in two shops in the square popped out and collapsed, he said.
All trains on the Auckland rail network were held in place, causing massive delays to commuters, due to the fire near one of the city’s biggest and busiest metro railway stations. Several roads, including Remuera Rd, were also temporarily closed in parts.
