Firefighters battling house fire in Firth of Thames

Extra firefighters were called in to battle a blaze engulfing a home south of Auckland which broke out on Saturday night.

The blaze had broken out at a home on East Coast Rd in Whakatiwai.

Fire and Emergency New Zealand was notified of the house fire around 10pm.

Spokesman Paul Radden said containing the fire was made difficult due to the fact there were no fire hydrants in the area.

Extra Fire and Emergency crews were called in from Tuakau and Papakura to assist with the job.

Around 24 firefighters were at the scene shortly after midnight, Radden said, continuing work to contain the blaze.

While the main house was well alight when crews arrived, Radden said they were able to save a large shed also sitting on the property, which contained boats.

A fire investigator was also at the scene, where he was working to determine the cause of the blaze.