Residents of Lake Ōhau are shattered by the remnants of the fire that hit the village on October 4.
Cameras were allowed inside Lake Ōhau Village on Tuesday for the first time since the fire broke out.
"The reality is, it's been such a hot fire, there's not really a heck of a lot left," Waitaki District Mayor Gary Kircher said.
Forty-eight buildings were destroyed when the blaze ripped through over 5000 hectares.
Waitiki District Council recovery manager Lichelle Guyan says she hopes to get residents living back in the village as soon as possible.
"Obviously, our goal is to get residents back and living in Ōhau village as soon as we can," she said.
"There's still a lot more to work through though before we can confirm when that will happen."
Residents and homeowners were allowed back in to check properties and collect items, but not to stay.
Hugh Spiers, the co-owner of family-owned B&B The Barn at Killin, says he has no plans to abandon the site.
"Dwayne and I lived at this part and all upstairs was guest accommodation," Spiers told Newshub.
"There's too much history here, too much DNA for me to walk away. We'll go on, we'll build, bigger and brighter."
Work is underway in Lake Ōhau Village to assess what needs to be done to allow residents to move back.
