A strong warning has been issued to those wanting to burn vegetation, after a large scrub fire broke out near Queenstown on Saturday.
A helicopter will assess the damage Sunday morning at Deep Creek in Skippers Canyon, Otago. The blaze was largely contained thanks to a swift and sustained response by emergency services.
Rural fire officer Mark Mawhinney told Newshub people who burn material must check the weather first.
"Make sure that there's no strong winds coming, because fires will stay hot for several days - even relatively small fires."
Ground crews will also be sent to dampen down hotspots on the perimeter at first light.
Burning branches are believed to be behind the blaze, which started at 2:45pm. A woodshed and vehicle were lost, but no homes were damaged.
"We're a bit worried that this continues into summer proper," said Mawhinney. "Some of these fires... could turn into pretty sizeable, difficult to manage and costly fires."
The Skippers Road was closed overnight.
Newshub.
