A large blaze has gutted a hardware store in Levin this morning.
The store on the main highway was well ablaze when firefighters received multiple calls shortly after 6am today.
Seven pump vehicles and specialist firefighting units tacked the fire at its height, Fire Service central communications shift manager Jan Wills said.
The 40m by 15m building was "99.2 per cent damaged" in the fire, she said.
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Firefighters have extinguished the fire and were now dampening down hotspots.
The cause of the blaze was not yet known.
Fire safety investigators would examine the building this morning.