Four fire crews have been working overnight to protect homes and a tree plantation in the Lake Ohau area.

Fire and Emergency’s Incident Commander, Steve Jones, said that two of the crews were protecting remaining homes in Lake Ohau Village and the other two were working in the Quailburn area.

"The crews had a busy night as the wind speed increased, dealing with hot spots and flare ups, Mr Jones said.

The Urban Search and Rescue team which arrived yesterday undertook an aerial reconnaissance using a drone at 2am and identified a significant number of hotspots, which will be targeted when the helicopters and ground crews begin work at daylight.

Eleven helicopters and nine ground crews will be attacking the fire today, with four crews continuing structure protection work.

Mr Jones said conditions on the fireground were expected to be challenging with high winds forecast throughout the day.

The Minister of Civil Defence, Hon Peeni Henare, will be visiting Ohau today to meet affected residents and fire crews.

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