Multiple fires in South Island, New Zealand

Yesterday the hot weather seen in southern Australia crossed the Tasman and brought the same to South Island New Zealand while temperatures in Melbourne quickly plummeted from 35C (95F) to 14C (57F) as the cold front arrived.

Multiple fires in the South Island of New Zealand in spring.
This is the beginning of the el-Nino on steroids and abrupt climate change writ large.

Brace for impact.


Homes lost as multiple fires burn across Otago and Canterbury

Stuff,

7 October, 2015

Emergency services will work into the night as multiple fires continue to burn across Canterbury and Otago.

Dozens of fires across the two regions on Wednesday left several homes destroyed, closed roads, cut power and left three firefighters suffering from heat exhaustion.

Rain began falling over Otago late Wednesday afternoon, but not before fires ignited and spread at Taieri Beach near Dunedin, Saddle Hill near Mosgiel, Dunback, and in the Waitaki area.

Fires in Canterbury were also stretching emergency services, and about five people were evacuated north of Christchurch late Wednesday afternoon. 

STATE HIGHWAY 1 CLOSED IN CANTERBURY

State Highway 1 was closed on Wednesday evening from the Rakaia River Bridge through to Bankside while firefighters worked to bring a fire on nearby farmland under control.

Roads were also closed temporarily in the Ashley Gorge area near Oxford while firefighters fought another fire.

Emergency Services were having difficulty containing the fire due to strong winds and challenging terrain, and expected to remain in the area throughout the night.

ARRAN SMITH    Motorists have been affected by a large scrub fire near Mosgiel.

Senior Sergeant Roy Appley said affected residents were being kept informed of the situation by police.

"Police request that members of the public who do not live in the areas affected by the fires keep away until further notice.

"Strong winds are affecting visibility for firefighters and emergency services and are causing the fires to move rapidly."

SUPPLIED

The fire weather danger is 'very high' to 'extreme' across most of the South Island on Wednesday.

There was no "immediate threat" to public safety, but residents were encouraged to stay vigilant and report any fires to 111 as soon as possible.

The scene near Oxford as a major fire burns. Photo: SAMUEL DAWSON

HOMES LOST IN OTAGO

The Fire Service said 28 fire trucks and six helicopters with monsoon buckets were being used to deal with the fires in Otago at their peak, and crews would keep working throughout the night to stay on top of any hot spots.

Four homes were damaged by the Saddle Hill blaze, which had spread over 20 hectares, and three firefighters were being treated for heat exhaustion and smoke inhalation. 

"A southerly change has assisted firefighters and they are making good progress in containing the fires," a spokesman said.

"With conditions improving and nightfall approaching the firefighting response has been downgraded with mop up operations being undertaken overnight."

Dunedin residents with respiratory illnesses were advised to keep all windows and doors closed due to smoke spreading across the city.

Twenty homes would remain evacuated overnight, but all had found alternative accommodation and a welfare centre set up in Fairfield was closed about 8pm.

One family saw their property going up in flames behind them as they fled their home of 10 years. 

Nicki Grant and her family expected they had "lost quite a lot" after the fire ripped through their Saddle Hill property.

"From here, my brothers place, I can still see flames and helicopters trying to put it out."

The family had been surrounded by smoke but "couldn't understand" where it had come from until a passer-by rushed up their driveway and told them they had to leave immediately.

"He said 'you need to get out now, get in the car' so we did," Grant said.

Saddle Hill resident Alister Wilden with his bike. Photo: JAMES GUNN/FAIRFAX NZ

"Then the flames came through; our driveway was on fire as we were going down the driveway in the [passer-by's] car.

"It was just a big ball of flames that came through our garage near our clothesline." 

The man who told them to evacuate - Alister Wilden - was "amazing", she said.

"If he didn't come up I don't think we would have made it actually, our car wouldn't start." 

Wilden helped the Grant family evacuate while watching the fire rip through his own property nearby, a 15 hectare pine and blue gum plantation. 

"It is gutting but I know other people who lost houses."

The only thing he saved from his shed on the property was a trail bike his two boys had saved up for.

Witness Dan Hedges said there were about three houses in the area the fire burned, fuelled by strong winds and about 27 degree Celsius temperatures. 

Large pine trees on the hillside burned "like twigs". 

"It was huge. Within a matter of minutes, it just let go," he said.

A large fire burns on a hillside in Pyramid Valley, North Canterbury. Photo: KATE MESSERVY

FIRES AFFECT POWER, WATER

Strong winds in the area had knocked out power to several hundreds residents near Saddle Hill at 1.20pm.

Aurora Energy said the fire was preventing lines crews from safely accessing the area to make repairs. 

Residents on several streets should prepare to be without power overnight, including Coalstage Rd, Chain Hills Rd, Saddle Hill Rd, Scurr Rd, McMasters Rd, Sproull Drive, and Finny Rd. 

The Dunedin City Council said it had lost power to some of its water pumps because of the fire. 

"At this stage we do not know how long it will take for power to be restored," a spokeswoman said. 

Water supplies were expected to last until Thursday, but a water tanker would be available at the intersection of Braeside and Clyde streets at 8pm on Wednesday.

Further north, the Otago town of Dunback was evacuated after it was threatened by a 90 hectare fire. 

The fire had been contained but strong winds sparked it back up.

"Firefighting resources are currently protecting property but weather conditions 
are making efforts to contain the fire difficult," a spokesman said.

Traffic restrictions were in place on State Highway 85. 

TWO HOMES BURN IN CANTERBURY

Two neighbouring homes were on fire in Dunsandel, south of Christchurch.

The fires were reported about 4.30pm, and Ashburton deputy chief fire officer Graeme Baker said it was "not looking good". 

A command unit was dispatched from Timaru, while crews from Burnham, Rakaia, Dunsandel and Leeston worked to contain the blaze.

Baker was listening to the events unfold on the Fire Service radio and hoped his "extremely busy" crew would not be called to help as they had already had a hectic day with other emergencies.

Firefighters from Hinds, Geraldine and Ashburton had been out for most of the day fighting three separate fires in the district, he said.

They had attended a shed fire in Coldstream, a hedge fire in Willoughby, and a scrub fire in Pendarves which had reignited after firefighters spent several hours getting the blaze under control early Tuesday. 

The Christchurch Transport Operations Centre said State Highway 1 was closed north of the Rakaia River bridge, between Main Rakaia Rd and Frasers Rd, due to another vegetation fire. 

NZ Transport Agency journey manager Lee Wright said the detour onto unsealed roads was expected to last all night, with dust making driving a "slow and necessarily cautious exercise". 

DUST STORMS HIT MOTORISTS

Earlier, high winds were creating dust storms in Canterbury, leaving visibility at almost zero on State Highway 1 near Dunsandel and Rakaia, police said.

Driving conditions were described as "extremely dangerous" and motorists were advised to avoid the area. 

The NZ Transport Agency warned of strong winds on many highways across Canterbury and Otago, including the Lewis Pass and Arthur's Pass. 

Those driving high-sided vehicles or riding motorcycles were urged to take extra are.

A dust cloud near Twizel. Photo: MARK ORBELL

The gales risked reigniting historic burn-offs, and firefighters in Canterbury were preparing to hit fires "hard and fast", Fire Service spokesman Andrew Norris said.

A fire in vegetation bordering Christchurch Akaroa Rd, near Duvauchelle, had been extinguished on Wednesday afternoon.

"The fire involved shelter belts and grass. We've got a couple of tankers there dampening everything down and checking for hotspots."

Norris said Christchurch City Council staff would be chopping down several burnt trees, with minor traffic delays to be expected.

He said the fire was caused by a blaze that reignited. Crews battled the original fire for several hours on Tuesday.

CAMPERVAN BLOWN OVER

A campervan carrying a family of five was blown over while going over the Pukaki to Tekapo hydro canal on the Tekapo-Twizel Highway.

Twizel police senior constable Les Andrew said the campervan was hit by a gust of wind and was blown off the road near Irishman Creek about 2.45pm.

Two adults and three children in the campervan had no injuries, Andrew said. 
Northwesterly gusts of up to 140kmh have caused power outages, grounded tourist flights in Tekapo and halted crane work in Timaru.

DRY CONDITIONS FAN FLAMES

Metservice meteorologist Rob Kerr said Dunedin temperatures almost reached a record high, experiencing 29C in the early afternoon, while Christchurch reached 28C. 

Humidity levels were very low, he said.

"The air will take moisture out of whatever it touches very quickly because it's very dry," he said.

Powerful winds in the area turned to gales, gusting at just under 100kmh.

Rain hit Otago late Wednesday afternoon though, and the winds were expected to ease as a cold cold front moved in.

These are updates the next morning