Police are confident a white van seen in the area did not cause the blaze. They are now looking for a dark coloured station wagon.

The fire near Queenstown which destroyed 150ha of native scrub was likely caused by a campfire, authorities have found.

A 200-litre drum of nitric acid was punctured by a forklift in West Auckland this afternoon, injuring two people.

A huge scrub fire that has destroyed 150ha near Queenstown is now under control but it's still going to take days to put out as police investigate the cause.

Several blazes over the past 24 hours have kept firefighters across the country on their toes.

The cause of the tragic fire that killed three members of a Flat Bush family just before Christmas remains undetermined.

One person has been seriously injured in a fire on Waiheke Island.

The fire that cut off a small community near Queenstown is now under police investigation.

A campfire has sparked a major bushfire that continues to burn out-of-control near Queenstown.

But at least they managed to escape thanks to smoke alarms.

Auckland firefighters have blacklisted a fleet of new fire trucks after water was reduced to a trickle with firefighters inside a burning house.

A kohanga reo has gone up in smoke in the central North Island.

SUP080117NADFIRE3.JPGA number of suspicious or carelessly-lit fires, like this one at Pipiwai on Saturday has sparked a total fire

Motorists travelling between the West Coast and Canterbury today were urged to go through Lewis Pass after an early morning fire at

Rural fire crews were confronted with another flare-up this morning at Mahia after a night of damping and monitoring a major grass and scrub fire.

Rocks have been cleared from the road and drivers should travel with caution.

South-westerlies dominating the country this summer will continue to deliver wind and cloud to large parts of the country today.

Helicopters are on their way to a scrub fire in a remote South Island mountainous region.

The fire on Kawau Island, northeast of Auckland, has turned out to be not as bad as first thought.

Home video appears to show a pair of cops taking a selfie as fire engulfs a home behind them.

Ten Fire Service trucks are on their way to the scene.

A Fire Service spokesman said they are heading to the boat near Mabel Island together with Coastguard.

At least one bach has been destroyed and other properties are being evacuated after fire broke out on Kawau Island tonight.

Three houses are no longer under threat from a spreading gorse fire in Mangatangi, Waikato.

Fonterra's Takanini building is filled with smoke - 30 firefighters are currently on the ground.

Emergency services are battling a scrub fire in Gisborne.

A Morrinsville family remain homeless after fire ripped through their home just after Christmas. The McRaes are now having to look

A fire fighting helicopter pilot had an unexpected passenger hitch a ride in his monsoon bucket on Monday.

Two helicopters and 10 fire appliances are being used to fight a blaze that has engulfed four hectares of pine trees north of Helensville.

Daughter makes a heartfelt tribute to her mother at the funeral of three family members who died in a tragic house fire just before Christmas.