Evacuated residents from Lake Ōhau village have woken up this morning still "in shock" from losing their homes in the devastating fire.
Up to 50 homes and buildings have been "pretty much destroyed" in the giant blaze at Lake Ōhau that started yesterday.
Fire crews are maintaining a perimeter around the blaze.
Residents evacuated from Lake Ohau village on Sunday morning are expected to visit the area later today.
Civil Defence minister Peeni Henare says the government is contributing $100,000 into the mayoral relief fund.
He and conservation minister Eugenie Sage have just returned from a tour of the fire site.
Dwayne Rennie owns The Barn At Killin B&B, sited on 25 acres of land behind the village. He and his guests fled in the early hours of yesterday morning - he has since been told his property was badly damaged in the blaze.
He was at the property with his partner, his niece, parents-in-law, and four guests when the fire broke out.
"The second storey has completely collapsed down on the first storey, there is much not left of it. Outbuildings and caravans were also lost," Rennie told the Herald.
The winds had been "absolutely" horrendous on Saturday night and Rennie spent the evening tying down gazebos and other loose items outside.
"In my time it was the windiest I have ever seen up there," he said.
"I thought we were going to lose the roof or something would come through the windows ... I knew something horrible was going to happen."
Rennie is now awaiting the next briefing for residents where he would check in with his neighbours, and hoped he could visit his property soon.
He said he was "in shock, tired, and sleep deprived".
He was staying with friends, and said the area had come together to support the evacuees.
"I'm trying to find a pair of undies; I have my phone and clothes on my back - that is all I have left."
Fire and Emergency NZ region manager Mike Grant told TVNZ today: "We can confirm that between 40 and 50 structures have been left uninhabitable - so are pretty much destroyed.
"There's more detailed assessment to be done, but that lifts that number up."
Grant said up to 40 homes had been saved.
The small alpine village in the Mackenzie Basin has been ravaged by a blaze that remains active.
Waitaki District mayor Gary Kircher said the fire has been fanned overnight by strong winds.
Speaking to Newstalk ZB's Tim Dower early this morning, Kircher said: "Overall, [our focus is] about people being looked after and hopefully being able to go and look at their homes today, at some stage."
Four fire crews have been working overnight to protect homes and a tree plantation in the area.
Fire and Emergency's incident commander, Steve Jones, said this morning that two of the crews were protecting remaining homes in Lake Ōhau Village and the other two were working in the Quailburn area.
"The crews had a busy night as the wind speed increased, dealing with hot spots and flare ups," he said.
The Urban Search and Rescue team used a drone at 2am to identify a "significant number of hotspots", which will be targeted when the helicopters and ground crews begin work at daylight.
"Eleven helicopters and nine ground crews will be attacking the fire today, with four crews continuing structure protection work," Jones said.
Conditions were expected to be challenging, with high winds forecast throughout the day.
Civil Defence Minister Hon Peeni Henare will visit Ōhau today to meet affected residents and fire crews.
A large proportion of the houses in the village - at least 20 - have been wiped out, he said.
Winds expected to pick up tonight
Winds are expected to reach up to 130km/h in the Mackenzie Basin tonight.
MetService meteorologist Tui McInnes said the region as a whole will experience a re-strengthening of the winds.
"That windy day will turn into quite a windy night."
McInnes said some respite is on the way for the area tomorrow, however, with northwesterly winds set to be replaced by much lighter southerly winds.
Meanwhile, firefighters in the Far North have been on standby throughout the night due to a bush fire.
Four homes were evacuated Ahipara after a fire broke out on Ngakaroa Rd about 12.45pm yesterday.
A spokesman for Fire and Emergency NZ said the blaze was about 40 per cent contained last night.
A further assessment of the situation will be made about 8am, he said.
