Bridge Hill/Castle Hill fire update # 8

6 December 2024

Fire and Emergency New Zealand has made good progress containing and controlling the 980-hectare vegetation fire at Castle Hill in the Canterbury foothills.

Incident Commander Brian Keown says the weather conditions this morning supported fire suppression.

"Temperatures have since risen, the wind has picked up and the relative humidity has dropped, but we hope to keep making progress. People should expect to see smoke in the area for the next  two to three days " he says.

"We plan to hit the fire ground hard with ground crews and air attack this weekend to get as much of the fire controlled and extinguished before stronger winds forecast early next week arrive."

Ten helicopters, two fixed wing aircraft and 86 firefighters supported by heavy machinery are on the fire ground this afternoon. 

Representatives from Fire and Emergency, Police, the Department of Conservation, Selwyn District Council, the Ministry of Primary Industries, Environment Canterbury and Waka Kotahi met with around 30 local residents to discuss progress on the fire. People were urged to stay vigilant and remain prepared to evacuate if required if conditions changed.

Three fire investigators are on the fire ground now in a joint investigation with Police which, because of the size of the fire, is likely to take most of next week.

District Commander Dave Stackhouse says he’ll be reviewing the fire season for Canterbury on Monday and will likely be declaring a restricted season for all of Canterbury.

A restricted fire season means people can only light open-air fires with a permit authorised by Fire and Emergency.

"It is also likely we’ll be declaring a prohibited season for all of Canterbury before Christmas," Dave Stackhouse says.

A prohibited fire season means no open-air fires are allowed.