Helicopters have been called in to help battle a fire in a forestry block near Milton this morning.
The blaze - in a block of established trees off Coal Gully Rd - covered an area about 300m x 300m, a Fire and Emergency New Zealand spokesman said.
Around 8.30am the Fenz spokesman said crews had stopped the fire spreading to the west but they were preparing for a predicted change in the wind direction later today.
Crews from as far away as Dunedin had been called in, and four choppers were involved.
There was no word as to the cause of the blaze, and police and a specialist rural fire investigator had been called in.
