A fire in a forestry block in the Catlins is burning out of control.
Firefighters were called to the blaze at 8:30am on Thursday, but strong winds are hampering attempts to control it, according to Andrew Norris from Fire and Emergency.
Twenty-five fire fighters are working to get the fire contained, and 4 helicopters have been called to work from the air.
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"Fire is covering an area of about 30 hectares," said Mr Norris. "Of that, 15 hectares is what we refer to as cutover, which means felled, and there are some standing trees in that area as well."
The forestry block is located between Waipapa Pt and Haldane.
National fire risk advisor Peter Gallagher says fires like this can be prevented if people pay attention to the fire risk signs.
"High fire danger means no fire, nothing that could cause even the slightest spark 'cause it's just so dry."
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