Firefighters and chopper pilots pulled off some spectacular saves as raging blazes at opposites end of Christchurch came within metres of houses. Jon Hicks/Supplied Several homes were evacuated as the fire in Redcliffs, Christchurch, neared. John Kirk-Anderson/Stuff Fire got perilously close to homes in Pines Beach in North Canterbury. Another Batten Grove resident, Graeme Galway, said Pines Beach had a big fire most years. * An earlier version of this story said 50 homes in Pines Beach had been evacuation when the number was actually 5.

Source: Stuff January 25, 2021 01:07 UTC