Renee Potae, Fire and Emergency Assistant Commander Manawatū-Whanganui, said there had been at least three crews of five or six people at a time at the site.
“It was at its most intense at the beginning,” Potae said.
“If the wind had been stronger that first night, it would have been a whole lot worse.”
The fire had been difficult to access early on, allowing it to spread and intensify.
Neighbouring property owners allowed fire crews to use their water supplies.
By Thursday morning the fire was contained but smouldering slash piles and windrows remained.
“Being so close to the ocean, the ground is mostly sand, and sand holds the heat really well,” Potae said.
“Things like toetoe and old stumps might look like they’re out but could still be smouldering inside ... in a couple of weeks that might reignite if we left it.”
Dunbar said the fire was deep-seated within the large slash piles fires which had to be pulled apart with an excavator to be extinguished.
Ground crews were digging up the sandy soil, turning over the vegetation and wetting potential hotspots using heavy machinery and hoses.
“It is hard yakka,” Potae said.
She said crew leaders had been trained to look after fatigue management among the firefighters, and Red Cross was providing meals to crews.
“Fire can be pretty destructive and, given that this is a really big forestry block, we’re really happy that it was contained so quickly,” Potae said.
Fire crews would be at the scene over the next few days before handing the site back to forestry management, she said.
Eva de Jong is a reporter for the Whanganui Chronicle covering health stories and general news. She began as a reporter in 2023.
