A large fire burning near a small West Coast town has been brought under control. A Fire and Emergency New Zealand spokesman said a crew from Brunner station was initially called to the fire when it was reported near the intersection of State Highway 7 and Moa St about 3pm. As the fire was moving quite fast in the grass, the station called for backup from Greymouth station, the spokesman said. A second alarm was sounded and two helicopters were dispatched, although one was stood down before arriving. The fire reached a size of about 100m by 400m near some train tracks, which required a locomotive to be stopped.

Source: Otago Daily Times December 24, 2022 05:05 UTC