Moutere Highway Fire Update 4 - 8:43 hours 28/02/19

28 Huitanguru 2019

Fire and Emergency crews have contained the fire near Moutere Hill in Tasman district overnight to the existing blackout perimeter.

The four crews working had a busy time in windy conditions but have been successfully extinguishing hotspots. This work will continue during the day and helicopters will be on standby.

Incident Controller Rory Renwick says the fire is now 80-90% blacked out, but there are some areas where the fire is burning deeply in the second generation pine forest.

“We’re confident we’ll be able to get this fire fully under control today,” Mr Renwick said.

It’s important the public stays away from the area while the firefighting activity continues. Cordons remain in place on Moutere Highway at the intersections with Maisey Rd and Old Coach Rd, he said.

“Yesterday’s events show that there is an extreme fire danger in Tasman-Nelson and people need to be extremely vigilant about any activity which might spark off another fire.”

Yesterday’s fire was reported very quickly by vigilant members of the public and Mr Renwick encourages anyone to call 111 if they see smoke or have any concerns.