Papakura residents were awoken about 5am today to the sounds of explosions from a car ablaze in a Red Hill parking lot.

A firefighter suffered minor burns while battling a housefire in Wainuiomata this afternoon. Fire Service shift manager David Meikle

A house fire in Franklin St yesterday afternoon, caused by a faulty washing machine, would have been far worse were it not for working smoke alarms.

Police and fire officers are looking into a suspicious blaze at a council flat in Christchurch early today.

A home has been destroyed by fire in a Gore overnight.

A person has suffered serious burns to their body in a house fire in Hastings last night.

An explosion in a crowded Manhattan neighborhood has left 29 people injured, and authorities said a second nearby site was also being investigated.

Two staff feared missing in a Christchurch blaze have been found, but firefighters are still facing a long night ahead.

Three people have been treated for smoke inhalation after an Auckland house fire.

A housebus and sand-blasting shed have been extensively damaged by fire in Marlborough.

Two helicopters called after a fire broke out in a private forest plantation in the Far North.

Watch NZH focus - Democratic candidate Hillary Clinton was unwell and seen "fainting" at a ceremony to mark the 15th anniversary of 9/11. At least 90 people are dead after airstrikes continued to rain in north-western Syria. And hundreds of firefighters are battling to contain wildfires on the northern Greek island of Thassos.

Dramatic photos of a car ablaze at Pakuranga Plaza yesterday show firefighters working to bring the inferno under control.

Three people were injured in a house fire on Auckland's North Shore overnight.

No one was injured when a truck caught fire on an Auckland motorway today, the fire service says.

A small fire by a parked Jetstar plane at Auckland airport sparked an emergency callout late this evening - but it appears to have been short-lived.

Fire safety officers will be returning the scene of a fire at an apartment block in Feilding today.

Helicopters have been called in to fight a large bush fire on the Big Ben range in Rakaia Gorge.

Tenants of a Pukekohe arcade badly damaged by fire are arriving at the scene, devastated at their losses.

Police are seeking witnesses following three suspicious fires which burned down homes in the Eastern Bay of Plenty.

Shearers' quarters have been damaged by fire on a North Canterbury farm.

A dog saved from a fire at an Otahuhu flat after figherfighers administered oxygen has since died.

A fire has destroyed a Waiuku home this evening, though no one was injured in the blaze.

Fire crews are currently at the scene of a large house fire in Rotorua.

The Raetihi Bowling Club has been significantly damaged by fire - making it the fourth serious blaze in less than a week in the wider

A person has suffered burns in a building fire in Auckland today.

Athletes have been forced to evacuate the Olympic track as a large bushland burns close to the stadiums.

Fire crews and Fonterra staff are cleaning up after two hazardous cleaning agents spilled at a plant overnight.

A Timaru factory has been damaged after a heating unit used for plastics moulds caught fire.

Two people died and 34 were injured after a huge fire broke at a Maryland apartment complex forcing residents to toss children from upper floors.