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Fire Update 5pm

Thursday 20 March 2008, 5:21PM

By Queenstown Lakes District Council

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KINGSTON

At 5pm this evening the vegetation fire burning 25km south of Queenstown appeared to be back under control, QLDC principal rural fire chief Gordon Bailey said.


“The report is a bit more positive, we have now extinguished the flames and contained the spread,” Mr Bailey said.


From first light nine helicopters and four ground crews were deployed to fight the blaze. The nine helicopters were swelled to 11 with the addition of an Iroquois helicopter from Oamaru and a BK helicopter from Christchurch.


Tactics were also revised with a new bombing technique introduced with helicopters and monsoon buckets deluging hotspots, four abreast.


“Fortunately we have seen a turn around, however at this stage we are reluctant to stand any helicopters down, given the forecast southwest winds. We are concentrating on dousing the major hotspots,” Mr Bailey said.


Three 10 tonne diggers and chainsaws had also been put to effect with the creation of firebreaks in strategic areas.


“We now feel we have the upper hand, although we will need to be vigilant,” Mr Bailey said.


Thermal imaging equipment had arrived at the scene to help identify any further remaining hot spots on the lakeside of the road.


“Basically we want to be sure we have prevented any further opportunity for another outbreak,” Mr Bailey said. Fire crews would be stood down for the night within the next hour and fresh crew would be on duty through the night, with work to continue on dealing with hot sports and mop up likely over the next 48-hours.


“I would like to thank these guys for their dedicated work, many of these people are volunteers,” Mr Bailey said. He also acknowledged the assistance of the staff from Delta, the council, the pilots and the DOC crew.


The fire, which was first detected on Sunday on the Lake Wakatipu side of the Kingston Highway, was located in difficult and mountainous terrain, burning towards the south east from Lake Wakatipu into the Hector Mountains.


“We have been able to undertake GIS mapping of the fire area and can confirm that at this stage the fire has burned some 739 hectares,” Mr Bailey said.


Aircraft were still being asked to stay out of the fire zone, due to the ongoing intensive helicopter activity. The Kingston highway remains open.


The fire was a multi-agency fire covering DOC estate and Queenstown Lakes District.


With costs now into the hundreds of thousands, the council would bring in a formal fire investigator to determine the original cause of the fire. The council would also be making an application for costs to the National Rural Fire Fund.