Teacher burns down school

A schoolteacher accidentally burned down his one-classroom school southeast of Auckland on Saturday.

Four fire appliances were called to the blaze at Drury Christian School at 5.30pm, but the fire had already gutted the building, with smoke destroying all that remained.

Drury chief fire officer Malcolm Brown said the teacher laid a burning log on the woodpile beside the building at 9.30am.

He had put a log in the school's wood burner but it was too large so he removed it, stamped out the embers and threw it back on the woodpile, believing it was safe.

The school's 40 students will be without a classroom when they return from their school holidays.

The school is believed to have no insurance.