Smoke from the fire could be seen on Thursday. Photo: RNZ / Calvin Samuel
Firefighters battling the Waipoua Forest fire in Northland are ramping up for a massive effort tomorrow they hope will bring the blaze fully under control - and eventually allow residents to return to their homes.
Incident controller Corey Matchitt said 45 firefighters were on the ground on Friday along with five heavy machines, including diggers and bulldozers.
The number of helicopters had been reduced from yesterday's eight to three, and the fire remained at 96 hectares with a 4.6km perimeter.
The increase from the previous size of 70ha was due to accurate mapping of the fire ground rather than further spread of the fire.
"The plan of attack today is to establish and strengthen our containment lines, which are our fire breaks around this fire, using firefighters on the ground, heavy machinery and helicopters. We're still sitting about 50 percent contained," he said.
By Thursday 27 February, the Waipoua forest blaze had grown to 96 hectares, with a 4.5 kilometre perimeter, Fire and Emergency NZ said. Photo: RNZ / Calvin Samuel
The wind could pick up later in the day to a 10-knot easterly towards the settlement, but light winds and cool conditions this morning had favoured the firefighters.
"At this point in time, it is staying put and it's still within our containment line. So it's sitting where we want it to sit," he said.
"So what we're doing today is preparing for the big effort tomorrow. We're bringing in about 100 firefighters on the ground, so we're setting up for that as well as doing our normal tasking. We're getting water supplies ready and we're getting access routes to the fire done by heavy machinery. Come tomorrow, when we have those 100 firefighters, we're going to hit this very hard with hand tools and hose lines."
Matchitt said "boots on ground" was the only way to completely extinguish a fire like that at Waipoua.
"Helicopters and heavy machinery are good to contain it. But to put out a fire like this, you need to get in there and do it by hand. So that's what we're working towards tomorrow."
Photo: RNZ / Calvin Samuel
Most of the firefighters were from Northland but an extra 40 were due to arrive from Auckland tonight.
Meanwhile, Matchitt said Fire and Emergency NZ held a second meeting with the Waipoua Settlement evacuees this morning to update them on progress.
"Our plan is to get these people back into their houses as soon as possible, but it has to be done safely. We've still got a lot of smoke just hanging around in the valley, that's a concern."
Matchitt said local residents were controlling access to the area, which removed the risk of sightseers trying to reach the fire ground.
He said the blaze was a stark reminder of the current fire danger across Northland.
"This fire is a demonstration that when you light a fire in these conditions it can get away on you very, very quickly. So our advice is, if you're going to light a fire, you must have a permit and go online to www.checkitsalright.nz before you light that fire. Be very careful."
Matchitt said he was grateful to firefighters on the ground for their hard work and the Waipoua community for their support.
"They know we're trying to get them back into their homes as soon as possible," he said.
About 20 homes were evacuated on Wednesday afternoon with some residents making their way to State Highway 12 while others had to flee towards the beach.
Some of those then made their way down the coast to Waikarā Marae, where about a dozen people are being looked after.
The rest are staying with whānau or at Taita Marae near Dargaville.
Kaipara Mayor Craig Jepson said he visited the fire ground on Friday, when Fire and Emergency officials told him they had a good chance of getting on top of the fire today.
"There's a lot of confidence there that they've now got this," he said.
However, they also impressed on him the amount of work that still had to be done.
"Helicopters don't put out fires, they suppress them, and then it's the ground crews that go in and do the real hard work, and boy, there's some tough looking people there - rugged individuals that are having to do that really hard work.
"I don't envy them in the heat, going in there, turning over those hotspots and wetting them down. And gradually they will totally eliminate the threat," Jepson said.
Currently the biggest risk in Waipoua Settlement was the smoke.
"Those houses are no longer under threat from fire, but they certainly have a health risk with heavy smoke that's sitting in the valley."
The mayor said the fire was concentrated in "cut-over" areas where pine trees had been harvested, leaving a lot of slash and burnable material.
There was no risk to the famous kauri tree Tāne Mahuta, he said.
Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
