Electrical fault cause of shed fire

A109 Light Utility Helicopter flight with mayor Gisborne City from the air in November 2023.

The fire that all but destroyed an implement shed and an attached sleepout on an orchard in Pilmer Road was caused by an electrical fault in a ride-on mower stored in the shed.

Fire and Emergency NZ crews responded to the blaze at Makauri at around 2.25am Tuesday morning.

The 20 by 15 metre building was well involved in fire when they arrived.

Specialist fire investigator Tim Allan was called in to ascertain a cause.

“It was started by a short in the battery in the ride-on mower.”

Mr Allan described the damage caused as a “total loss”.

“Two tractors in the shed were lost in the fire along with a range of other orchard machinery and gear.”

The fire crews were able to stop the fire from spreading to the nearby residence.

“The house was only a few metres away, and the windows were cracking with the heat from the burning shed,” Mr Allan said.

“So it was a good save from the fire crews there to stop that fire from involving the house.

“It doesn’t get much closer when the windows start to crack.”

The sleepout attached to the shed was unoccupied.