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The Fire Service will continue to push for a ban on fireworks sales to the public because it saw little evidence of people behaving more responsibly for this year's Guy Fawkes celebrations.
Canterbury and Auckland were hit hardest, with firefighters reporting as much as triple the usual workload.
Fire Service northern communications shift manager Megan Ruru said in the 24 hours to midnight on Saturday the service fielded 540 111 calls, responding to 307.
In Wellington police made 30 arrests and fielded a large number of calls, while the Fire Service fought 29 scrub fires and took 70 calls.
In the worst incident reported yesterday, a Canterbury man said he could have died in a house fire started by fireworks.
Auckland police said fireworks were fired at people in Devonport and police had to disperse a crowd of 300 people in nearby Cheltenham.
The Government warned it would consider banning sales to the public based on irresponsible behaviour and damage from the misuse of fireworks reported this year.
Although there were no reports of major injuries, fires or property damage in Auckland, police said there was a big jump in disorder jobs compared with the previous weekend.
Fire Service chief executive Mike Hall said the number of fire jobs was similar to last year but that was the worst Guy Fawkes in 10 years.
The Fire Service would brief the Government this week, but he was not convinced people had been better behaved under the threat of a ban.
"I think the reason that the numbers are reasonable is the fact that most parts of the country are wet.
"I don't think people, especially the kids who are causing all the problems, are heeding the warning at all.
"Our position will remain that the public sale of fireworks is past its 'use-by' date," Mr Hall said.
Police from Turangi to the top of Northland responded to 423 reports of disorder between 6pm Saturday and 1am yesterday - up 56 per cent, or 270 call-outs, on the previous weekend.
Fire staff called Whitianga police to fighting at a fireworks display in the Coromandel Peninsula beach town, where youths were also caught trying to break into a store of fireworks.
Tauranga police responded to a party of 200 youths who were fighting.
And celebrations in Petone turned nasty on Saturday night when two groups of youths clashed on the foreshore, leaving two young men with stab wounds.
A 19-year-old is in a serious condition in Wellington Hospital after being stabbed five times and a 13-year-old was treated for a back wound.
Police were pelted with fireworks, bottles and cans of beer.
At least one youth faces charges.
St John Ambulance northern communications reported just one fireworks-related injury overnight on Saturday.
A spokeswoman for Environment Minister David Benson-Pope said he would be briefed this week on the fireworks period by the emergency services and the SPCA.
He would not comment on public behaviour before Guy Fawkes night was over.
- Additonal reporting NZPA
