Fire destroys 1ha of scrub and bush at Lake Rotorua sulphur flats

Hot ashes dumped in bush are believed to be responsible for a large fire. Photo / Kelly Makiha

A fire that ripped through bush and scrub at Ngāpuna yesterday burned about a hectare of land beside Lake Rotorua and the sulphur beds.

A Fire and Emergency New Zealand spokesperson said fire crews, including a helicopter, were at the scene for about three hours.

“It’s been established the fire started by accident from an incinerator. Our Community Risk Management team will be working with the local community to provide fire safety advice.”

Firefighters were called to the area, down a private dirt driveway off Hona Rd off Vaughan Rd, just before 2pm yesterday.

A monoon bucket dumps water on a fire that destroyed 1ha of land on the sulphur flats at Lake Rotorua. Photo / Kelly Makiha

Locals living in the area spotted smoke and flames and called emergency services.

A helicopter and a monsoon bucket were used to dump a large amount of water onto the blaze to get it under control.

A woman in the area told the Rotorua Daily Post some young people had used an incinerator to make a fire on Tuesday night.

She said they cleaned out the incinerator on Wednesday morning and had dumped the ashes in nearby bush - not realising they were still warm and could reignite.

She said the flames came within 5 metres of a house where an elderly man lived.