Rain and snow dampen down Pukaki Downs and Tekapo wildfires Update #8

22 September 2023

UPDATE: As of Friday afternoon, State Highway 80 from Pukaki to Aoraki/Mount Cook is now closed due to heavy snow.

Firefighters on the ground at the Pukaki Downs fire are making the most of favourable weather conditions to strengthen and extend fire breaks today.

Incident Controller Stephen Butler says cold, rainy and snowy weather has helped dampen down the flames.

"The rain and snow mean our crews can focus their efforts on the fire breaks, as well as opening up burnt slash piles to expose deep-seated fires to the rain,".

Stephen Butler says good progress has been made and heavy machinery is being used to increase the fire breaks, concentrating around the northern perimeter of the fire.

"We’ve had to stand down helicopters for the day due to the weather conditions but calmer and frosty conditions forecast for tomorrow mean we’ll be able resume the firefighting then," he says.

"Power is back on in the area and State Highway 80 is open, but please avoid any unnecessary travel.

"The rain and snow may also have affected road conditions, so please drive very carefully if you do need to carry out essential travel on the road."

Rain with the settling snow has also dampened down the second vegetation fire in the area at the top of Lake Tekapo today. Fire crews are mopping up hot spots and will be monitoring and assessing the fire for the next 48 hours.