Rising temperatures and dry conditions in the Bay of Plenty have led to over 69 vegetation fires in November, resulting in the implementation of a restricted fire season.

“There hasn’t been significant rain over the winter, so the vegetation has dried,” Fire and Emergency Bay of Plenty District Manager Jeff Maunder said.

Temperatures spiked in early December, and Maunder worries that the winds will dry things out further.

“We’ve got over 500,000ha of commercial forestry conservation land, surrounded by farms, grasses and scrub that could be at risk.”

A series of fires along State Highway One near Burnham and Dunsandel south of Christchurch have broken out today. Photo / Supplied

The massive fires seen in Australia, the United States and Canada, seen through television, have started to become a reality in New Zealand, Maunder said.

“You’ll see in the South Island that it’s consistent. They are starting to have some decent wildfires down there.”

Most fires are caused by three things: men, women, and children – the odd one is induced by lightning, he said.

“There is not much we can do about lightning. The rest of it is about how to educate and keep our community safe.”

According to Maunder, Fire and Emergency New Zealand does its best to mitigate the risk.

There are three levels of control: open fire season, restricted fire season and prohibited fire season.

A fire can spread quickly in dry areas and can become very difficult to extinguish once it becomes large enough, Maunder said.

“Fire doesn’t care. It’ll just rock on and do its thing.”

Firefighters are warning Bay of Plenty residents to be careful when lighting fires.

Simple things can be done to mitigate the chances of igniting a fire, such as not using power tools near dry patches of grass, careful disposal of cigarette butts – and not mowing the lawn if it is too dry.

“If it’s hot and dry, just be aware that anything can create a spark.”

Cooking fires do not require a permit, but Maunder said people need to be mindful of where they dispose of their ashes.

“Just be mindful because the consequences can be horrific,” he said.

A small spark can cause massive damage, such as the Snodgrass fire on November 20, which forced houses to be evacuated.

“The wind came up, blew sparks into the shelterbelt.”

A helicopter with monsoon bucket heading toward the fire on Waikite Road.

There is also a considerable cost to firefighting fires, and when helicopters and monsoon buckets are used, the cost skyrockets to $3500 an hour.

“We have a policy of hitting it very fast doing that. And that’s the cost of doing business,” he said.

Visitors to the Bay of Plenty, East Coast, and the Coromandel must be aware that it will be very dry, and caution is advised, Maunder said.

“People can visit checkitsalright.nz to see if it is safe to light a fire,” he said.

- SunLive