A false fire alarm sparked a mass evacuation from Christchurch Airport this afternoon.

Four children badly burned after a car they were in caught fire in the backyard of a Huntly house were sniffing fly spray.

Fire investigators are this morning heading to the scene of a blaze that badly damaged Hutt Valley property last night.

A neighbour has spoken of seeing the skin on one boy's arm "totally gone" following a car fire that left four children injured.

Otago firefighters are continuing to battle a major bushfire it conditions that are making life "very difficult".

Police are guarding a popular restaurant, cafe and bar on the Gisborne's waterfront after it was severely damaged in a major fire.

At least 143 properties in Western Australia, including the 128 houses in the tiny town of Yarloop, have been destroyed by a raging bushfire.

A fire which ripped through a property in Canterbury could have led to more tragic consequences had those inside not woken up to the sound of windows smashing.

A fire that gutted a property in Gore early today is being treated as suspicious by the police.

A building at a Christchurch secondary school has been severely damaged in a suspicious fire early today.

Residents of a Kingsland property were lucky to escape a house blaze unharmed this morning.

Fire crews discovered the body of a man after they were called to a house blaze in Marton overnight.

The strongest El Nino in nearly two decades has created tinder-dry fire conditions around the country, prompting a plea to heed restrictions now blanketing most regions.

A fire at Cambridge Middle School has been extinguished but firefighters are treating the blaze as suspicious.

More than 20 firefighters from across Waikato were today called to a large blaze which produced a plume visible over Hamilton.

A dozen firefighters were called to help fight a house fire in central Auckland this morning.

A contingent of Kiwi firefighters are joining their counterparts across the Tasman to combat wildfires blazing in Victoria.

New Year partygoers escaped an inferno in a 63-storey Dubai hotel yesterday.

Emergency services in Whangarei last night controlled a large scrub fire that threatened properties in a coastal community.

A large scrub fire in the Northland seaside settlement of Tutukaka has officially been brought under control after initially threatening homes.

Firefighters battling a large sand dune fire at a Christchurch beach this afternoon now appear to have it under control.

The whare kai, or cooking house, at Waikare Marae went up in flames around 6pm.

A man who lost his house in the Christchurch earthquakes has been struck by tragedy again after losing his house to the Australian bushfires.

A lakefront Queenstown home was damaged by fire yesterday, after its occupant took a phone call while cooking.

A man has been arrested after he "lost it" and set his house on fire on Christmas Eve in rural Waikato.

Fire danger remains high in many parts of the South Island because of high temperatures, low humidity and strong winds.

A house in South Auckland has been extensively damaged after an early morning blaze on Christmas Eve.

A state house on the North Shore is due for demolition today after it was gutted in a fire on Monday afternoon.

Firefighters are still at the scene of a scrub fire north of Auckland that destroyed more than 10 hectares of vegetation.

Firefighters are battling an out-of-control vegetation fire at Stillwater, north of Auckland.