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Dianne Manson / Getty Images
Firefighters rush to the scene of a fire in the old paper factory building in Mataura.
Mataura and Gore firefighters are at the scene of a fire in the old paper factory building in Mataura, where ouvea premix is stored.
A Fire and Emergency New Zealand spokesperson said a building on the factory site in Kana St was “well involved”.
A police spokesman said they were notified of the fire around 1:40 p.m.
There were several detours at the site and traffic was diverting onto State Highway 1, the spokesman said.
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The building is where thousands of tons of ouvea premix are stored.
It is not known if fire poses a hazard to the premix.
Ouvea premix is a dangerous substance that releases ammonia gas if it gets wet.
Taha Asia Pacific was the company that stored 10,000 tons of the premix in the old paper mill and another 10,000 in the Invercargill warehouses before its liquidation in 2016.
Taha had a contract with Rio Tinto to take the slag and turn it into the premix that would be used as fertilizer.
The premix has been a contentious point for Mataura residents who want the substance removed from their city.
A reporter at the scene said there were about 30 emergency services employees on Kana St, near the paper mill.
At around 2.50pm, a firefighter entered through a door in the easy-south corner of the building and another firefighter was seen running a fire hose through the door.
At around 2.53pm, four more firefighters entered through the door in the southeast corner.
Two PowerNet vehicles also arrived at the scene around 2.50pm.
The FENZ HAZMAT rescue command truck arrived at 2.35 pm and firefighters began to set up about 300 meters from the mill.
There were three fire trucks, at least five police cars and a Highways South vehicle at the scene.
At approximately 2:43 p.m., the Hazmat truck headed north past the mill and appeared to leave the scene. The three fire trucks are still next to the mill.
Do you have images or video of the fire in Mataura? Send them to [email protected]
Chris Couzens, a resident of Mataura, said a strong wind was blowing toward the fire.
“When the fire started there was a strong chemical smell, we put on masks.
“The smell is not that bad now, but we can still smell it.”
Couzen said he had not been told to evacuate.
Another Mataura resident said the fire was believed to be at the “hydrogenerator plant”, which generates electricity for the building.
“There is smoke everywhere, smoke is coming out of chimneys and there are firefighters in all directions,” he said.
Lana Rangi, a resident of Mataura, said she was at Mataura school, where our children were let out early due to road detours.
Rangi said he had not seen smoke, but that there were police cars throughout the municipality on both sides of the bridge.
Gore District Mayor Tracy Hicks said he had learned of the fire but was still in the process of getting more details.
A statement from the Gore district council says they were informed of the fire, which forced the closure of the Mataura Bridge.
“There is a detour on Kaiwera Rd for southbound traffic. Our highway team says that Kaiwera Rd is sealed with no bridge weight restrictions, making it suitable for heavy hauling. “
An assistant at Mataura Caltex said they had run out of power and were likely to be closing that day.
The Caltex was too far from the fire to notice the smoke, but there were many police cars and highway detours at the scene, he said.
A Mataura business owner said there had been power outages since the fire started.
In July, emergency services were called to the old paper mill due to a broken sprinkler.
