A family en route to a holiday in Whangarei are lucky to be alive after the vehicle they were in caught fire while they towed a caravan with a gas bottle on the back.
The Ford Explorer four-wheel drive burst into flames on State Highway One on the Auckland side of the Brynderwyns, about 3.30pm yesterday.
In the vehicle was Auckland electrician Andre Dixon, his wife Diane and their 12-month-old daughter. They were on their way to Waipu for a holiday.
About half way up the hill, Mr Dixon said the vehicle suddenly lost power and he felt like its gear box was giving up before he saw steam coming out of the engine.