A Northland man has been charged with lighting 10 fires in the Kaipara area that have destroyed areas of conservation land and a forest

Climate change scientists have projected continued global greenhouse gas emissions would heat Northland heat up more than other regions

Fire investigators are unable to work out what started a house fire that has now claimed four lives.

The cause of the fire is not yet known.

A firefighter appeared drunk and others could not demonstrate basic critical skills during an audit, an official report says.

Neighbours of Whitianga residents who lost their homes in this week's bush fires have been rallying around - donating food, clothing and time to support the recovery effort. Made with funding from NZ On Air.

Jani Dennis and Paul Lee came perilously close to losing everything in this week's devastating bush fire which ravaged 70 hectares of land at the tip of the peninsula.

The forecasted weather bomb has seen a change in wind direction at the scene of the massive bush fire south of Whitianga.

Christchurch police are investigating two incidents in the city, the latest was when a man entered a tavern yesterday with a sawn-off shotgun.

At least six properties were destroyed - but there was no loss of life during the Whitianga bushfire. And locals say they know it could have been much worse. Made with funding from NZ On Air

A Dunedin man who burned down his family home four days after his marriage fell apart has been jailed for three-and-a-half years.

They described it as explosive, extreme and rampant; and tonight the wildfire that cost residents of an idyllic Whitianga peninsula their homes is burning on.

Coromandel MP Scott Simpson on the damage caused by a devastating fire, which destroyed at least six homes. The Wilderland Sustainable Community was hit hard - with buildings, equipment and crops destroyed. Made with funding from NZ On Air

Valiant effort by neighbours not enough to save homes of shocked Whitianga locals.

Council spokeswoman Rebekah Duffin said the destruction of the Wilderland farm would be a huge blow to the area.

A Toyota Altezza was set alight in a carpark near Invercargill.

A fire which burned through 100ha of hillside near Arthur's Pass last week and four more fires on Saturday are suspected to be the work of an arsonist.

A person is injured and homes threatened during an overnight house fire.

Crews battling a suspicious vegetation fire near Blenheim are facing challenging conditions.

A bush fire which threatened homes near Blenheim this afternoon is being treated as suspicious.

A 20-year-old Kaipara man is appearing in the Whangarei District Court today on one charge of arson.

A blaze near Arthur's Pass has flared up again, almost one week after it first broke out.

Staff have been evacuated from a Countdown supermarket at Warkworth north of Auckland, because of a chemical leak.

A property has been extensively damaged after a house fire near Westport on Friday night.

Police are confident a white van seen in the area did not cause the blaze. They are now looking for a dark coloured station wagon.

The fire near Queenstown which destroyed 150ha of native scrub was likely caused by a campfire, authorities have found.

A 200-litre drum of nitric acid was punctured by a forklift in West Auckland this afternoon, injuring two people.

A huge scrub fire that has destroyed 150ha near Queenstown is now under control but it's still going to take days to put out as police investigate the cause.

Several blazes over the past 24 hours have kept firefighters across the country on their toes.

The cause of the tragic fire that killed three members of a Flat Bush family just before Christmas remains undetermined.