Matakana Island fire: Firefighters spending Christmas away from families to contain blaze

An aerial shot of Matakana Island, looking towards Tauranga, shows some of the damage from a fire that began on Saturday night. Photo / Supplied

Firefighting crews who managed to contain a large forestry fire on Matakana Island in the Bay of Plenty will be spending their Christmas back on site to ensure it doesn’t flare up again.

The fire began on Saturday night and burned through about 37ha of scrub and pine slash on the island.

Residents described the blaze as a “beast”, like a “taniwha” and “really scary”.

In a statement released last night, Fire and Emergency New Zealand district commander Jeff Maunder said helicopters and monsoon buckets, heavy machinery and fire crews would return to the island this morning “to work on extinguishing the fire”.

There had already been a heavy firefighting presence on site since the fire began and the blaze had largely been extinguished.

At least two helicopters, nine fire trucks and 24 crew members were battling the fire on Sunday.

While most of the flammable scrub and slash were already burned, “with the wind continuing to ease, we’re confident of holding the fire contained within its current perimeter”, Maunder said

The fire crews working today were expected to monitor the fire.

“They’ll also be reinforcing our containment lines to further ensure the fire is unable to break out.”

Maunder said smoke from the vegetation fire had been drifting across Tauranga and the coast.

Ash has also been reported falling in the Gate Pa suburb.

Maunder said if anyone found it was affecting their breathing, they should stay indoors with the windows closed.

Bree Tregurtha-nairn, who lives in Gate Pa, said she smelled smoke on Sunday morning and “little pieces of ash travelling through the air”.

“I noticed there was a bit of ash on my car as well.”

Rangiwaea Island and Matakana Island resident Mikaere Sydney said on Sunday the fire was “quite scary”.

“There was a big orange glow, and [it was] like a big taniwha.”

Sydney said he was coming home from town when he first saw the glow, then the local community pages on social media that “went off”.

Firefighters from various stations in the Bay of Plenty are responding to a large vegetation fire on Matakana Island. A helicopter has been requested to help battle the blaze. Photo / Alex Cairns

He said the fire was close to the local airstrip and beach access road.

“It was horrible — I was just gobsmacked, seeing this big glow.”

Mikaere said the community was mobilising to supply kai for the people on the ground and people were in their kitchens cooking,

The fire was similar to a smaller fire in 2020, but this one was “a beast”, he said.

On Sunday, kaumatua Hauata Palmer said he lived a distance away from the fire behind a big shelterbelt, but there was concern the fire could spread and potentially affect people “living on the old mill side”.

Firefighters are still battling a blaze on Matakana Island. Photo / Supplied

Fire and Emergency New Zealand was alerted to the fire at 7.36pm on Saturday when it was about 300m by 300m in size.

Several crews responded via barge and helicopter.

The fire was visible from the Tauranga mainland and its smoke could be smelled from as far as The Lakes, and rural Welcome Bay.