'Suspicious' fire destroys building in Hanmer Springs

Fire investigators have been looking into the cause of a suspicious blaze that destroyed an abandoned building on the old Queen Mary Hospital grounds in Hanmer Springs early on Saturday morning.

Emergency services were alerted to the fire, which was being treated as suspicious, at 3.47am a Fire and Emergency NZ spokesperson said.

The Hanmer Springs and Culverden brigades were called to the blaze.

"It was at Queen Mary Hospital, but not the main building."

The fire in the 20m by 10m abandoned building at the township took about four hours to put out, the spokesperson said.

"It's being treated as suspicious and a fire investigator has been there, but has gone now.

"Fortunately the building involved was not part of the QMH [Queen Mary Hospital] critical infrastructure, however it is a stark reminder to be vigilant as it could be worse next time. Please report anything you see as a possible fire immediately."

Originally established in 1916 to care for returning World War I servicemen, the hospital was built on the grounds of a former sanatorium dating back to 1879.

The hospital closed its doors in November 2003.

In 2004, Heritage New Zealand designated the former Queen Mary Hospital and Hanmer Springs Thermal Reserve Historic Area a historic site.