'Someone must know firestarter'

Rotorua police say somebody must know the firestarter who deliberately set three blazes in the city last Thursday.

Officers are disappointed with the lack of public response as they attempt to catch whoever started fires at the courthouse, Te Ngae police station and a block of classrooms at the girls' high school.

Extensive smoke damage closed all affected buildings and prompted fears that a serial arsonist was responsible.

"This is the sort of crime where people out there know who did it," Detective Senior-Sergeant Garth Bryan said.

"We would expect someone to be concerned enough to let us know." Information could be given in confidence, he said.

"With any fire, the risk is there for people to get hurt. We were very lucky that did not happen [on Thursday]."

Mr Bryan said measures taken to guard against further fire attacks on public buildings would remain in force "for as long as we believe it necessary, and certainly as long as this person is still at large".

Meanwhile, it was "business as usual" at the Rotorua Courthouse, although staff from the main administration area on the ground floor - which suffered the worst damage - had to be relocated elsewhere in the building.

Courts' property manager Kim Williams said the Courthouse still had the odour of smoke and still needed cleaning.

Structural damage to one of four affected classrooms at Rotorua Girls' High School have put it out of use for several weeks.

And the Te Ngae police station was so badly smoke damaged it would need a total refit, said the Rotorua police area commander, Inspector Bruce Horne.

The trail of fires started at the station about 5.30am and ended at the girls' school 90 minutes later.

Mr Horne said scene examinations at all three sites had been completed and evidence found there was being analysed.

The focus for investigators was on identifying a white car seen speeding away from the police station at dawn on Thursday along Vaughan Rd, a back street parallel to Te Ngae Rd.

* Anyone who can help is asked to call 0800 TIPOFF (0800-847-633).