25 January

The large fire at Pines Beach near Kaiapoi in Christchurch remains uncontained as at 7pm this evening.
18 crews and 4 helicopters have been battling the scrub fire this afternoon which has reached 20 hectares in size.
Firefighters also continue to actively protect houses threatened by the fire. Residents were earlier evacuated.
Fire crews and helicopters will continue fighting the fire as long as they can this evening. Crews will remain at the fire overnight.
Fire and Emergency is also asking people to be extra vigilant about fire risk over the next few days when high temperatures are forecast across the country.
Put off lighting any fires in the open if you are in a prohibited fire season and ensure braziers, pizza ovens and charcoal fires are supervised and completely extinguished,.
We are asking builders and contractors to take extra care using power tools that might cause sparks in the open air.
This is particularly important for grinding and cutting metals, especially if they are near vegetation.

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