A forest fire which closed State Highway 1 north of Auckland for five hours yesterday is being treated as suspicious.

Firefighters are praying for rain to help them fully extinguish the huge fire near Dunedin. The cost to fight the blaze is now over $500,000.

A massive fire northwest of Dunedin has so far razed 400 hectares of forest land and is so big in places firefighters can not get near it.

Environment Minister Peter Garrett yesterday continued to fight for his political life.

A 14-year-old youth will appear in court charged with arson after a huge fire north of Wellington forced over a hundred people to evacuate their homes.

The Fire Service believes a fire this morning at a west Auckland day care centre was deliberately lit.

Two people were rescued after leaping into the water from a burning launch off Mayor Island in the Bay of Plenty today.