Fire at St Johns Hill fish and chip shop

Three FENZ appliances attended the scene. Photo / Bevan Conley

Emergency services were called to a fire overnight at HillTop Fish Supply on Great North Rd, St Johns Hill.

A Fire and Emergency New Zealand spokesperson said they got to the scene around 12.30am on Wednesday.

“It was well alight when the brigade arrived.”

The spokesperson said fire crews were ventilating the premises by 1.40am.

“Fire investigators are attending this morning to ascertain the cause.

“We have no indication whether it was suspicious or not at this stage.”

Savages Bakery next door was cordoned off on Wednesday morning but St Johns Pharmacy - also on the ground floor - was open.

The second floor is occupied by Hair Creations and the Shirley McDouall School of Dance.

Whanganui senior station officer Aaron Summerhays said there was extensive damage throughout the building.

“We ended up with four appliances up there.

“The shops upstairs have also sustained some smoke damage.”

In a Facebook post, Hair Creations owner Debbie Smith said “the future is uncertain at this time”.

“It is with a heavy heart I advise my clients that there was a fire at the St John’s Hill complex in the early hours of this morning,” she said.

“There has been a lot of damage and Hair Creations is now un-operational.”

More to come.

Mike Tweed is an assistant news director and multimedia journalist at the Whanganui Chronicle. Since starting in March 2020, he has dabbled in everything from sport to music. At present his focus is local government, primarily the Whanganui District Council.