-
Source: ONE News
Residents were evacuated from their homes on Tuesday night as fire fighters battled a pine forest blaze in Marlborough.
Emergency services were called to the fire in a pine plantation on State Highway 6 near Canvastown, about 51km northwest of Blenheim, about 10.30pm.
A 1km roadside stretch of the forest was ablaze early this morning, although it was not yet known how far the fire extended into the hills, southern fire communications shift manager Andrew Norris said.
Police evacuated nearby residents as a precaution while crews from three engines and two tankers battled the blaze.
It was not yet known how many households had been evacuated, although the number was certainly less than a dozen, Norris said.
The dark, windy conditions made it difficult to contain the fire, he said.
"We're not able to put helicopters in there at the moment, so crews are just protecting the houses and we'll probably have to wait to first light before they can do too much."
