A vegetation fire is burning out of control on a sandspit at the bottom of the South Island. Fire Service southern shift manager Andrew Norris said scrub at Sandy Point on Oreti Beach was engulfed by a fire that had spread across 200m. There were six New Zealand Fire Service and rural fire service crews on site. The fires, on the banks of the Taylor River, Taylor Pass Rd and Whither Rd were all in close proximity to each other. Norris said a skeleton crew remained at the scene of the Taylor Pass Rd using an infrared camera to look for hot spots.

Source: New Zealand Herald January 15, 2017 17:15 UTC