Marshalee Joyce was given an introduction to the world of emergency services from her Kamo Rd home yesterday.
The 15-month-old watched, fascinated, as five fire crews and three appliances were called to the former Northern Bakeries building in Whangarei shortly before midday, blocking the road for around 20 minutes.
Construction workers renovating
the building got a shock when a fire began only metres from where they were working.
Fire officers received a call at 11.42am after the alarm and sprinkler system went off inside a storage room full of sofas, tables and other household goods.
Whangarei senior station officer Wipari Henwood said two fire crews from Whangarei, two from Kamo and one from Onerahi attended the callout, and had the blaze under control in around 20 minutes. On arrival, they had had to break down a door using axes and sledgehammers to get to the blaze, which was in the former boiler room.
Fire safety officer Craig Bain said the demolition crews working on the building were using a gas-axing technique on pipes.
"They were using it to cut through pipes and it looks like a rogue spark has caught the household appliances that were there."
It is understood the household goods belonged to a bread-factory worker who was storing them there.
