Family homeless after blaze near Doubtless Bay

A blaze has badly damaged a home at Parapara

A Northland family are homeless after a blaze badly damaged their home at Parapara, inland from Doubtless Bay.

Mangonui fire chief Antony Pedersen said the family were watching TV about 8.20pm on Monday when they saw a flickering light outside. They opened the curtains and realised the entire outside wall was on fire.

They called 111 immediately but with their rural home a 25-minute drive from Mangonui fire station the blaze had spread into the main part of the house and the ceiling space by the time firefighters arrived.

Two fire appliances and a tanker from Mangonui responded, along with a tanker from the Karikari Rural Fire Party. The two-storey house was badly damaged and the family had lost all their possessions, Mr Pedersen said.

They were currently staying with friends and relatives. It appeared the fire had started in a washing machine on the deck.

Pool closes

Te Papawai Bay of Islands Community Pool is closed all this week while a broken water heater is removed and replaced and the water is brought back to less frigid temperature. The $60,000 cost of the new unit has been met by the Far North District Council and the Kawakawa Business and Community Association. The pool is due to reopen on Sunday.

Land wars events

Iwi, hapu and whanau can now apply for funding for events to commemorate the New Zealand Land Wars.

Te Putake o te Riri - Wars and Conflicts in New Zealand Fund is a $1 million annual fund to promote and deliver regional commemorative events throughout the year, and national events on October 28, the date set aside to mark the Land Wars.

Te Ururoa Flavell, the Minister for Maori Development, said the date marked the signing of the Declaration of Independence in 1835. He said the first commemorations would be in Te Tai Tokerau in the form of a multisport event, the E Rima Challenge. He said commemorations were likely to move from region to region each year.