Quakes and quakes, some flooding, more quakes, and now fires? Come on, Mother Nature, what's next?

Hundreds of firefighters continued working around the clock last night, hosing down hot spots and smothering embers from the devastating Port Hills blaze.

Ten of eleven houses destroyed in Port Hills fire could have been saved had career firefighters not been sent home at the start of blaze, union bosses say.

The Port Hills inferno was so powerful that it was spreading up to 160m every minute at it's peak, and water firefighters put on it evaporated.

Smoky smells in Port Hills' properties does not pose a serious threat to health, authorities say.

Port Hills homeowners have this afternoon been allowed to return to their smouldering homes that have burned to the ground.

Frustrated homeowners still don't know whether their Port Hills homes are standing or have been ravaged by fire.

Contractors working in the area where the devastating fire first broke out on Monday pleaded for helicopters to be sent out, it can be revealed.

Plans are under way to get stranded residents back home, but winds may yet pose a danger.

Son reeling after family home containing all of late father's belongings razed.

Civil Defence minister wants the law governing emergencies improved.

A quieter night for firefighters as the deadly Port Hills wildfire enters its fifth day.

Watch: The wildfire races across a section of the Port HIlls, growing in intensity, in the timelapse footage.

Civil Defence's reports of houses destroyed by fire and evacuations over the past 24 hours have varied wildly.

A Christchurch couple who were told that their home was lost in the Port Hills blaze, just hours after finally insuring it, appear to have had a lucky escape.

Exactly how many properties have been damaged by fires in Christchurch will not be known until much later, authorities say. And although

Firefighters have put out a large blaze at a Waikato sandblasting premises this evening.

Port Hills fire updates: Amazing images show the extent of the damage from the air, and just how close it came to some properties.

While the cause of the Port Hills fires was being investigated, it did "seem a bit odd" that two fires had started at about the same time, says the Prime Minister.

The Canterbury DHB and the Asthma & Respiratory Foundation have issued warnings about smoke inhalation for those affected by the Port Hills fires.

Kiwis are showing their support for those affected by the Port Hills fire and the firefighters working to put it out by making a statement

The ongoing firefighting effort includes 15 helicopters and planes - the maximum number that can safely be in the air at any one time.

With a raging wild fire surrounding the Christchurch Adventure Park, the future is uncertain for the fledgling business.

Contact the SPCA if you need a temporary home for a fire-evacuated pet

Cameraman says Sugarloaf seems to be the hottest part of the fire.

Employers need to be flexible and allow staff to tend to their families and properties in the wake of the Port Hills fire.

Chaos and cordons as evacuated locals try to find out how their homes survived the night.

As fire spread down the hills above his beloved historic Ohinetahi homestead and gardens, Sir Miles Warren wasn't going anywhere.

Firefighters who came to the rescue and battled the fires across the Hastings district were given a top send-off last night. About