New firefighters have been brought in from across New Zealand to battle a blaze in the Far North that shows no sign of fizzling out.
They're fighting a fire in Kaimaumau the size of 2400 rugby fields as it tears through fence lines into neighbouring farms where residents watch as flames eat up their pastures.
The new firefighters will replace those who have been battling the blaze for 16 days. While many of the crew are from nearby Northland towns, some have travelled from as far as Dunedin to help out.
"People have given up their Christmas, their New Year, their time with whānau, and they're here because this is their job, this is what they trained for," says Kevin Ihaka, operations manager for the Kaimaumau fire.
A command unit vehicle acts as a mobile headquarters that sends out the latest information in an ever-changing fire.
Further up the road, helicopter pilots are readying their crafts. On Monday, five continuously picked up loads of water to douse flare-ups.
Once up in the air, the destruction is obvious. Most of the ground is burnt black and the little that has escaped the flames stands in stark green contrast.
"The issue we've got here is that the perimeter is so long it's going to take so long to get around the edges," says Air Division Commander Rory Renwick.
The pilots are also the eyes for ground crews battling the peat fire, which burns and smoulders underground.
"It holds the heat. As it moves out, it'll reignite the vegetation, the fire will go down, burn underground, then come up again," Ihaka says.
The fire has scorched vegetation in Waiharara and destroyed fences. Firefighters have their hands full containing the blaze because just across State Highway 1 from the flames are residents' houses.
"If it had come across the house it would've been a goner, but it was okay," says local Shane Bensemman.
He and his wife constantly check on the fire from their front window.
"Both Dianne and I are pretty anxious. You're constantly looking out to look at which way the wind's blowing."
They've already been evacuated twice from their home and they remain on edge while the fire burns on.
"I actually spent all Christmas night up, I stayed awake until 6am going outside to have a look," Bensemman says.
For farmers Jeremy and Olivia White, the fire has already torn through their boundary fence.
"It's coming into the paddock about 50 to 100 metres and creeping through the grass because it's dry," says Jeremy. "Probably got about 90 hectares out of action out of 180, so about half."
As the fire edges closer, there's a risk it could grow.
"Creeping out to the pasture it can go faster because the pastures dried out quite a bit," he adds.
There's concerns for the livestock too. Calving season is still two months away and the stress of the fire could cause the cows to give birth too early.
But the Whites, like many in Waiharara, are at the mercy of the elements.
"We've just got to keep moving forward. We can only do what we can," Jeremy says.
