A large fire is raging out of a block at Northcote College on Auckland’s North Shore this lunchtime as firefighters take industrial action.
The blaze is in the school’s sports pavilion.
A Fire and Emergency spokesman said crews were alerted to a fire at Northcote College around 12.17pm today.
“A crew from Silverdale is currently in attendance, with multiple additional crews on their way to the scene.”
Northcote College confirmed in a social media post that the active fire was affecting the school’s sports pavilion.
It said students had been evacuated and safe at another end of the campus.
A video taken from the school’s field shows large flames shooting from the burning block and plumes of black smoke billowing into the air.
A Herald reporter at the scene said bits of the building’s facade are falling away while the central part of the roof has completely caved in.
A Northcote College student told the Herald the fire alarm went off and all students were evacuated to the courts.
They said everyone could see “heaps of smoke” coming out of the building as they exited their classroom. All students are gathered on the courts watching crews battle the blaze, they said.
The student said the smoke was changing from black to white and was rising “really high” in the air.
Before the smoke turned black, they could see flames inside the building.
“Giant flames” could be seen all over the roof, they told the Herald.
Witness Leo Straight described the scene as “pretty hectic”, saying those gathered on the courts could feel the heat coming from the fire on the other side of the field.
He said it took firefighters 30 minutes to arrive at the school.
Police have blocked off access to the entrance of the school on Kauri Glen Rd.
One nearby Seaview resident told the Herald she saw a plume of smoke rising from the direction of the school.
She looked online and saw there was a fire, so decided to come and take a look at what was going on as her granddaughter attends the college.
A maintenance worker at the school said he and his team had come back from lunch to see smoke rising from the school.
He was concerned it might have been in one of the new buildings they were working on, but thought that the safety features in them would’ve stopped a fire quickly.
His and his team’s cars are blocked in by emergency services, so won’t be able to leave any time soon.
Earlier today the New Zealand Professional Firefighters Union (NZPFU) confirmed in a social media post it would be striking from 12pm-1pm.
“FENZ management is quick to say that firefighters are ‘gambling with public safety’ by striking. The truth is, FENZ is gambling with your safety every single day,” the post read.
NZPFU said another one-hour strike was planned for next Monday.
It comes nearly 12 years after a devastating fire destroyed the technology block (E block) at the school in September 2014 - and is the second major fire to break out as firefighters take strike action.
Last month, a large fire engulfed a family-owned grocery store in Pakuranga while firefighters were on strike.
Fire and Emergency said it took volunteer crews 30 minutes to travel to the scene, where usually it would take seven minutes.
They later slammed the union, saying it was “gambling with the public’s safety”.
The union responded, saying it was “disgusting” that Fire and Emergency was “throwing stones at a moment when, obviously, the building is still on fire”.