Choppers battle large vegetation fire at Port Awanui

Helicopters with monsoon buckets were called in on Monday afternoon to tackle a major driftwood and vegetation fire that started at Port Awanui just south of the Waiapu River mouth on Monday and they were back yesterday for much of the day dealing with the blaze. It has been suggested the fire was started by locals frustrated at the lack of action in cleaning up woody debris on the beach, Pictures supplied

“Disgruntled locals . . . tired of all the empty promises our beach is next to be cleaned, have taken matters into their own hands’: Conservationist Graeme Atkins.

Helicopters were used on Monday afternoon and yesterday to bring under control and put out a large vegetation fire at Port Awanui just south of the mouth of the Waiapu River.

It has been suggested the fire originated from locals burning woody debris on the nearby beach out of ongoing frustration from waiting for it to be cleaned up.

An East Coast conservationist who lives in the area said on social media that it was the sixth fire along the beach in two weeks and that “disgruntled locals . . . have taken matters into their own hands”.

Fire and Emergency NZ was alerted at around 3pm on Monday and told a fire in driftwood on the beach had spread to scrub and pine and pohutukawa trees. Concern was raised for ancient pohutukawa trees in the vicinity.

It was reported the fire started before midday that day but was not out of control at that stage. Strong winds fanned it into a major fire in the afternoon.

Firefighters from Ruatoria and Hicks Bay responded but could not gain access to the fire zone. At that stage the fire was burning along about a kilometre of beachfront and could not be accessed by foot.

“Because of the access issues we called in two helicopters with monsoon buckets and they doused the fire for around three hours until it got too dark for them to operate,” a FENZ spokeswoman said.

The fire, which covered about 10 hectares, was still burning on Monday night.

“We brought in three helicopters on Tuesday morning to continue to fight the fire. They operated for most of the day.”

FENZ hoped the southerly change that came through yesterday would bring some rain to help douse the fire. Rain did eventuate.

The Herald was told the cause of the fire was yet to be established but it appeared it may have been started by a cooking fire lit on the beach.

“We remain in an open fire season and fires are permitted on the beaches,” the FENZ spokeswoman said. “But we stress again that people lighting them have got to ensure the fires get put out properly before they leave the beach. In this case, it appears that was not done.”

It is understood there was no threat to property in the area. However, it has angered some people on the Coast.

Coast conservation identity Graeme Atkins wrote on social media yesterday . . . “My worst fears . . . disgruntled locals, mostly young ones, tired of all the empty promises our beach is next to be cleaned, have taken matters into their own hands and decided to clean our beach by setting it on fire. Total disaster.

“Many heritage trees from the days when Port Awanui was the capital of the East Coast have gone up in flames. Several old growth pohutukawa are no more.

“This is the sixth fire along our beach in two weeks. Get the forestry companies down there quick smart with their machinery and start cleaning our beach. Most of the s..t on our beach belongs to their industry.

“Do the right thing before fires threaten our lives and houses.”