Fighting on two fronts
Firefighters stretched across the region as a new blaze erupts in Nelson city while the Pigeon Valley wildfire continues to rage out of control in Tasman.
A blaze that raced through trees on the fringe of Nelson city, threatening homes, has deepened the region’s fire crisis.
In a day that saw hundreds more evacuations in wider Wakefield and Teapot Valley to escape from the 2000-hectare fire that has been burning since Tuesday, the new fire yesterday brought the danger right into Nelson city.
The fire broke out at Walters Bluff, on the northeastern fringe of the city. Police confirmed that an arrest was made for a ‘‘disorder event’’ near Walters Bluff yesterday afternoon.
The fire started about 2.30pm on the forested hillside and residents were shocked at the speed of its spread upwards. Some raced home to rescue pets and belongings.
The flames came within metres of several houses, and it’s understood that at least one was damaged.
The plume of smoke was visible across the city that had already been shrouded in haze from the huge blaze, 25 kilometres to the southwest. Roads were closed around Walters Bluff as four helicopters with monsoon buckets were diverted from fighting the main fire. Their rapid response had the fire under control relatively quickly.
Walters Bluff resident Kent Robertson said he was concreting outside his Iwa Rd house when he heard a ‘‘terrible noise’’.
‘‘The flames were close to the house and there was the popping and cracking of a fire, and I just hightailed it out of there,’’ he said.
Father and son Shane Paratene and Hakaraia Hemi, who live in Atawhai Drive about 20 metres from where the fire started tried to lend a hand immediately.
Hemi said he was about to open a beer when he saw a ‘‘boom of white’’. He called to his dad and his cousin and they ran up the hill while he called 111.
His father had organised a hose and they started filling buckets and tossing the water on the scrub.
‘‘We were up there for about five minutes before any fire engines came. They said: good job, good job, we’ll get you to help with some real firefighting now.’’
Resident Lee Fleming said he was driving home about 2.30pm when he saw the fire start in Iwa Rd.
‘‘I saw it when it was as small as that Mini. Then it just took off. ‘‘It’s so dry up there. ‘‘There’s so much long grass and they’ve recently been culling some trees there.’’
His wife, Elly Fleming, was at the base of the hill watching the helicopters drop water.
She could see the peak of her house’s roof and was relieved to see the fire moving away.
‘‘It was pretty worrying, pretty frightening. They’re doing a great job up there.’’
The fire, blown by northeast winds, headed towards the Centre of New Zealand but appeared to be under control by 3.45pm. A light plane dropped fire retardant on the area at 4pm, but part of the area flared up again at 5.40pm.
It capped a day of drama that saw hundreds more evacuated from the area around the main Nelson fire, which flared up again on Thursday night. Civil Defence said yesterday the main fire covered 2000 hectares with a 23km perimeter.
In the morning, remaining Teapot Valley residents, on the southeast edge of the fire, were evacuated.
As the wind changed to northerly in the early afternoon about 240 Wakefield residents, living north of State Highway 6 between Pigeon Valley Rd and Simmonds Rd, were asked to evacuate.
Civil Defence said the evacuations were a precaution, but also advised other residents in Wakefield township to be prepared to evacuate or self-evacuate.
The Civil Defence Centre in Wakefield was moved to Saxton Field Stadium.
Among the Wakefield evacuees were T J Harman and his family who were heading to a friend’s house in Richmond. They were busy rounding up the family’s five cats
and four dogs. ‘‘We packed most stuff last night except for the animals and the essentials; with the wind picking up we thought it might happen.’’
Wakefield’s The Villa cafe owner Michael Meissner said he had a sleepless Thursday night at his home in nearby Brightwater.
‘‘When I came home it was full on, you could hardly see the sun. ‘‘It was blood orange.’’
Later last night they received the Civil Defence alert, asking people to be prepared to evacuate.
‘‘We had the car packed with the most important items, the cat and the chickens.’’
Only one house has so far been confirmed as being destroyed by the main blaze.
The modest house in Redwood Valley sits in the grounds of a much larger home seemingly unscathed by the flames.
The fact most homes have so far survived has been described as a ‘‘miracle’’ with many thanking the heroic efforts of firefighters.
Smoke from the fires has also caused problems. A Nelson hospital spokeswoman confirmed that a man was admitted overnight on Thursday due to smoke.The man was in a stable condition.
‘‘It was pretty worrying, pretty frightening.’’ Walters Bluff resident Elly Fleming