A photo from the scene of Friday night's house fire in Pouto, Kaipara. Photo / supplied
A photo from the scene of Friday night's house fire in Pouto, Kaipara. Photo / supplied
Charred debris is almost all that remains of a young family's home after a fire tore through the Pouto Peninsula property on Christmas Eve.
A Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) spokeswoman said they received a call about the blaze in the small Kaipara coastal community at 8.45pm on Friday.
By the time three fire appliances and water tankers from Dargaville and Te Kōpuru brigades had made the 50km-plus drive to the small west coast settlement, the family's home and a nearby garage were almost entirely destroyed
Te Kōpuru chief fire officer Barbara Searle said the house was "pretty well on the ground" when the crews of volunteer firefighters arrived.
They spent more than four hours bringing the blaze under control before having to "dampen it right down", Searle said.
She felt for the young family whose little ones and their parents may have lost everything right on the cusp of Christmas.
While she did not know what had caused the blaze, the callout was one among many experienced by Northland's fire brigades in the last few days.
The Northern Advocate reached out to the family, but they were too upset to talk at this stage. We will publish details if any fundraising efforts are set up to support the young family.
In an appeal, unrelated to Friday night's tragedy, Searle urged Northlanders to put the matches away.
"It would be good for people to avoid lighting fires if they can. The conditions look green but they are actually really dry and it's catching people out."
Fire investigator Gary Beer spent Christmas morning making the long journey to the remote peninsula to try and uncover the cause of the blaze.
His investigation remained ongoing at edition time, however, he said the cause is believed to be accidental.
In the Far North, a troop of firefighters, contractors, and FENZ staff spent Christmas Day monitoring and containing the Kaimaumau wetland blaze as it burned into its ninth day.
The fire has spread across an estimated 2000ha of Kaimaumau wetland. Photo / Mary Jane Hoult
Incident Controller Mark Wirihana thanked those on the ground working to keep communities and the area safe.
"This time of year is normally spent with family and loved ones so their commitment to help the community is extraordinary and truly appreciated.
"We would also like to thank the community for their great support during this past week," he said.
The fire - which has burned through 2000ha of bush, scrub, swamp and dune vegetation - had previously been contained and crews had been conducting controlled burnouts to remove around 15ha of unburnt vegetation.
Wirihana said helicopters, machinery and crews had continued to increase containment lines on the northern sector and improve protection lines around the Kaimaumau village.
