Blaze at Auckland campervan workshop

AUCKLAND: A campervan company boss says rental motorhomes worth millions of dollars have been damaged after a large blaze tore through an Auckland workshop on Thursday.

Yesterday, fire investigators had yet to go inside the ruined building on Richard Pearse Dr near Auckland Airport, where 300 rental vehicles belonging to Tourism Holdings were being serviced or waiting for collection.

Small fires had continued to flare up from inside the smouldering remains, with fire crews still at the site more than 24 hours after the blaze broke out.

Smoke from the early morning inferno shrouded parts of Mangere Bridge in a thick haze.

Company chief executive Grant Webster yesterday said up to 15 campervans parked inside the massive workshop when fire broke out had been written off.

Scores of other vehicles in the hire fleet in and around the premises had been damaged by heat or smoke during the blaze, but exactly how many were affected was unknown.

‘‘I would suggest the damage we’re facing from the fire is in the millions,’’ Mr Webster said.

He said although it owned the fleet, Tourism Holdings leased the building.

At the height of the fire, some 70 firefighters and 14 fire trucks battled the blaze, which broke out in the rear of the building.

Firefighters had to rip open a hole in the wire perimeter security fence to reach the burning building, winching and driving vehicles parked at the front of the burning business.

Traffic was brought to a standstill near the Kirkbride Dr offramp along the airport highway during rush hour on Thursday. Smoke poured from the building for hours as firefighters battled the fierce blaze, that started around 5.30am.

Noone was in the building at the time, with flames setting off a fire alarm.

Mr Webster said the destruction of the workshop had taken an emotional toll on employees who considered the workplace their ‘‘home away from home’’.

A fire spokesman said investigators started interviews on Thursday, but yesterday it was unclear if they would be able to enter the building for a closer inspection to determine the cause of the blaze.

Hot spots had continued to erupt yesterday, and given the extent of the damage to the structure it was uncertain whether it was safe to go inside yet, he said. — The New Zealand Herald