Christchurch fire: evacuations as fire burns in Port Hills, some residents may return

Helicopters are helping fight a major fire in Christchurch’s Port Hills that has claimed a small cabin and forced dozens of people to evacuate their homes.

The fire has burned about 15 hectares of land over Hillsborough since firefighters were first called just after 11 p.m.

People have been evacuated from Avoca Valley Rd and Port Hills Rd.

The Civil Defense is now coordinating accommodation at St Martin’s School Hall for evacuees in need of assistance.

Helicopters are assisting ground crews and an aerial survey of the fire site found that the fire has consumed about 15ha.

Residents evacuated from Port Hills Road were still unable to return to their properties, while those from Avoca Valley Rd could, said Area Fire and Emergency Commander Dave Stackhouse.

No further evacuations are currently planned.

The flyover looked positive, Stackhouse said.

“Our crews did a fantastic job preventing the fire from spreading up the hills and potentially affecting homes.

“Our priority this morning is to keep it within the area that we have contained it.

“The weather is on our side, with only light wind forecasts, this should help us in our work throughout the day.”

Police were investigating after a flare was reported in Port Hills before the fires started Wednesday.

Stackhouse said this morning that at the height of the fire, 15 devices and equipment were deployed to fight the blaze.

He said 50 firefighters were on the ground and were concentrating on protecting structures along Port Hills Rd. They were working to prevent the fire from spreading uphill.

Stackhouse said they would understand the fire well in first light this morning.

Two helicopters were to conduct an aerial reconnaissance and help ground crews to fight and contain the fire this morning.

The fire started in the Alderson Ave area, near Port Hills Rd, near the suburb of Hillsborough, RNZ reported.

It was on the side of the hills facing the city so Christchurch residents could see it and called Fire and Emergency last time, RNZ reported.

State Highway 76 has been closed at Curries Road and motorists are pulling away from the area.

MetService meteorologist Francis Russell said that after some rain early this morning, the forecast in Christchurch was for a good day with light winds from the south.