An early morning fireworks battle, broken glass and an exploded television have infuriated some North Dunedin residents.
Kimberly Smith, of Pine Hill, said she helped contractors pick up the used fireworks, smashed beer bottles and a scorched television from the ''carnage'' on the North Ground early yesterday.
Mrs Smith walked through the park yesterday morning to take her daughter Amelia (3) to daycare.
''I'm so sick of it ... When Amelia sees this field she runs right across it - imagine if she fell today.''
Cumberland Motel owner Wayne Robertson (60) said he saw ''six students'' shooting Roman candles at each other on North Ground at 3am yesterday.
He was ''disappointed'' that broken glass shards were scattered across the park.
''They blew up a TV - that is the worse thing - and it's gone all over the park ... with these students you just wonder what the mentality is.''
Fireworks had been set off in North Dunedin since Friday last week, he said.
He had owned the motel for 11 years and he said some students believed antisocial behaviour in North Dunedin was normal.
''The kids today are less respectful ... they have a tendency to believe that this is studentville and it's OK to break glass on the footpath and it's OK to urinate wherever they want in the middle of the day, because that is what students do.''
The Fire Service recorded 28 fireworks-related callouts in the South Island, which included several callouts to the student quarter.
Deliberately placed fireworks are also believed to have caused damage to a car parked on Victoria Rd on Tuesday night.
The East Otago Fire Risk Management Officer, Michael Harrison, investigated the scene yesterday and it appeared no liquid accelerant was used.
''We are looking at the possibility it was a firework placed on the vehicle, but our investigations are continuing into their incident.''
Anyone who had seen anyone acting suspiciously or playing with fireworks in the St Kilda area was urged to contact police, he said.
That fireworks incident came hours after 2000sq m of vegetation on reserve land near Waldronville was destroyed after teens were spotted setting fireworks off in the scrub.
Mr Harrison was also called to investigate a fire in the ceiling cavity of a Forth St flat just after midnight.
''There were a lot of fireworks being let off in the area last night, but we have found no evidence to suggest that fireworks were involved.''
An electrical fault may have caused the blaze, which was fortuitously spotted by an awake flatmate who heard a ''cracking noise''.
''That saved them all, basically.''
Although the flat was equipped with smoke alarms, the batteries were missing which was disappointing, he said.
