Fire and Emergency New Zealand urges caution

Fire at Appleby Tuesday 12 Dec. Photo Fire & Emergency New Zealand.

 

Fire and Emergency urges caution following fire in Appleby near Richmond

Fire and Emergency is reminding people to be very careful with their fire activity following a fire in Appleby near Richmond on Tuesday 12 December.

The fire started at a firewood supply yard near Appleby around 4pm after a permitted burn pile got out of control.

Crews and trucks from 10 different brigades worked alongside two helicopters to contain and extinguish the fire. The last crew left the scene around 3am, with the property handed back to the owners this morning.

Assistant Commander Craig Davies says the fire had a lot of wood in a relatively small area and was fanned by strong winds, which resulted in a high intensity fire that was difficult to extinguish. 

Appleby fire.

"Our mainly volunteer personnel we had at the fire all worked extremely hard and it is a credit to them that the fire was contained and prevented from spreading.

"Unfortunately, a front-end loader, a truck and a firewood splitter were destroyed in the blaze, but the work of the crews meant the neighbouring properties were protected.

"We would like to thank Taylors Contracting and Fulton Hogan, who helped by supplying water tankers and front-end loaders.”

Craig Davies says the very dry and windy conditions, with wind gusts up to 90kmh, will be present in the area again on Wednesday, so people should be cautious with any burning or spark-generating activity.

"Please be very careful with ignition sources and please remember to always check the local fire danger at www.checkitsalright.nz and follow our safety guidelines, even if you have a permit to light a fire.

"If the fire danger is Very High or Extreme, it is best to postpone a fire."

Fire at Appleby

Report from the Richmond Voluntary Fire Brigade

It was another busy day for the Richmond Voluntary Fire crew, the third call today turned into a large fire in Appleby. 

The Richmond Volunteers were joined by crews from Hira, Nelson, Mapua, Brightwater, Upper Moutere, Motueka, Appleby, Tasman, and Ngatimoti. 

They also had some great Community assistance from Taylors Ltd, Miller's firewood and Fulton Hogan suppliing water tankers and heavy machinery plus two helicopters helping to make great progress. They wished to thank heaps very one who helped.

They said it was a great effort by all involved who had worked so hard to make very good progress and to make a substantial difference. Crews will be staying overnight to keep working on it.

Fire and Emergency New Zealand.

Pigeon Post News, Richmond.