Fire crews have been responding to a rash of fires across Otago today as warm and windy conditions grip the region.
Crews from several Central Otago brigades were called to a vegetation fire on State Highway 8 at Roxburgh late this morning, and two helicopters were also sent. The fire was estimated to have covered about 1.5ha.
A Fire and Emergency New Zealand spokesman said a command centre from Dunedin, and crews from Roxburgh, Millers Flat, Dunstan and Alexandra attended.
Crews from other Central Otago brigades and two helicopters also responded to a vegetation fire in Wright Rd, just south of Roxburgh on the other side of the Clutha River, in the early afternoon.
By 4.30pm the Wright Rd fire had been extinguished and crews were mopping up at the first site.
In an update about 3.45pm a Fenz spokesman said firefighters were also working to contain a fire in forestry slash on Taieri Mouth Rd, at Kuri Bush, south of Dunedin.
That fire was reported about 1.40pm. Shortly afterwards, a scrub fire was reported between Lawrence and Waitahuna. Local crews had that blaze under control by 3pm.
Just after 3pm, crews were called to a report of a slash fire spreading into trees on View St, Balclutha. As at 3.20pm they were still working to bring that fire under control, taking water directly from the Clutha River.
There was also a vegetation fire at Allanton, south of Dunedin, this afternoon, and further north crews were called to a grass fire on the outskirts of Oamaru.
Earlier, an Otago Daily Times reporter at the scene of the first Roxburgh fire said it was immediately opposite the Roxburgh Golf Club.
She could see two firefighters spraying foam on a hillside that appeared to have already been burned.
"There's not a lot of flames to see, there's smoke," she said.
One firefighter at the scene said wind was their "real concern".
Gusts of up to 84km/h had been predicted for today.
- Staff reporters
