Media release

27 February 2014

Council stops issuing fire permits

No fire permits will be issued for Auckland’s rural areas until further notice due to dry conditions causing heightened fire danger.

Principal Rural Fire Officer Bryan Cartelle says Auckland now has an elevated fire risk as high temperatures continue into March.

“There has been a lack of rain and it is extremely dry out there. It’s all building up and it just takes one small spark to set off a blaze,” he says.

“For example, we had a case where a quad bike used during weed spraying backfired from the exhaust. The spark emitted started a fire. This just shows how dry it is out there at the moment and why we’ve made the decision to not issue any fire permits for the foreseeable future.”

The restricted fire season in rural areas continues to remain in place and outdoor fires in urban areas in Auckland are not permitted.

For more information on the different levels of fire restrictions or other fire related queries visitwww.aucklandcouncil.govt.nz ‘rural fire’ or call 09 301 0101.

ENDS

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