Remote fire burns 400 hectares of rural Marlborough



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Six people were airlifted from the area and a DOC cabin was damaged.

Supplied

Six people were airlifted from the area and a DOC cabin was damaged.

Nine helicopters are fighting a fire that has spread to 400 hectares in the interior of South Marlborough.

Six people were evacuated from the Clarence Valley area last night and a DOC cabin on Goose Flat was damaged.

Fire and Emergencies New Zealand was alerted to the fire on the land from the Department of Conservation at 6:10 pm on Wednesday.

The fire occurred near the Goose Flat Hut, about 30 kilometers inland from Clarence, in the Ka Whata Tu or Rakihouia Conservation Park, between the Inland Kaikōura Ranges and the Seaward Kaikōura Ranges.

A FENZ spokeswoman said there was no road access to the site, so the fire trucks that initially responded were returned and helicopters dispatched.

Reception of communication on the site was poor, so few details were available about the fire on Thursday morning.

However, a crew update at 9 a.m. confirmed that the fire had spread to some 400 hectares and nine helicopters were working on the blaze.

There were no houses in the area at risk, the spokeswoman said.

Marlborough Helicopters dispatched two helicopters to assist Wednesday night.

A spokeswoman said the pilots spent the night at a nearby farm and flew again Thursday morning.

More to come.

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