Kaitaia police staff were trapped in their station by a fierce electrical storm that jammed automatic doors and disconnected phone lines yesterday.
Firefighters responded to three fire alarms, seconds apart at 1.37pm, in the hospital boiler room, J block at Kaitaia College and the police station, all located on Redan Rd.
No fires were found so the alarm activations were thought to have been triggered by a lightning strike.
The police lost power and phones and were briefly unable to open their electric sliding door.
Senior station officer at Kaitaia Fire Brigade, Ross Beddows, said the police station's front automatic doors became jammed, prompting mostly administrative staff to exit through a side door.