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The scene of the McLeans Island fire - Source: ONE News -
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An extreme fire risk has been declared for much of Canterbury on
the same day emergency services battle a second blaze in 24
hours.
It is believed the bush fire, which has now been contained, could
have been deliberately lit. It scorched through tussock and
grassland in the McLeans Island area, northwest of
Christchurch.
The fire covered an area of about 19 hectares, including eight hectares of pine trees and 11 hectares of grass.
Three helicopters and more than 20 appliances joined the fight, after fire services were told of the blaze at about 11.30am Tuesday.
The fire spread through gorse and scrub quickly, and while no buildings were under threat, it came close to large power lines.
Fire service staff say they are "very suspicious" about how the fire started.
"This is the second major fire we've had here in two days ... and we're very concerned and the police will be brought in to investigate it," says Dave Burford, assistant area fire commander.
The fire service says the only thing that stopped the blaze from being a bigger disaster was the lack of wind.
There is now a total fire ban in Canterbury and although the fire is under control, crews will still be working into the night.
