A Pyes Pa hillside went up in smoke yesterday after tinder dry gorse ignited, sending flames racing up the bank and towards homes.
Firefighters from the Greerton brigade brought the Pengary Lane fire under control when the alarm was raised, soon after 3.30pm.
With a crew also fighting the flames from the top of the bank, the fire was prevented from threatening nearby homes.
Safe from the flames and overlooking the fire from the other side of the valley was Georgia Grove resident and Tauranga city councillor Murray Guy.
"It is a timely reminder, in a semi-rural environment and with the onset of summer, about how a fire can take off," Mr Guy said.
Mr Guy said the city was drying out from a reasonably prolonged period without much rain.
He had noticed the smoke coming from the direction of his house when he was driving home from a council meeting.
He said the fire was heading up into a significant area of bush.
There were houses further back from the top of the bank.
The fire service received another emergency call at 5.49pm from a Kopu Drive resident near the top of the bank and sent a crew to do some more dampening down.
The blaze was suspected to have been started by a hot ember from a controlled fire in a pit in the ground.John Cousins