Fire near Queenstown surges to cover 1200 hectares as winds fuel flames

A bush fire on the shores of Lake Wakatipu, near Queenstown, has surged to cover 1200 hectares as winds fuel the flames.The blaze, which has been burning since Tuesday morning, was not contained or controlled when firefighters suspended operations on Tuesday night.Firefighting resumed at Walter Peak at Wednesday morning, both in the air and on the ground.Assistant District Commander Nic McQuillan said on Tuesday night strong nor-westerly winds had fueled the fire, which had escalated in the McKinlays Creek area."There are areas where the fire will burn itself out, but we are expecting it to still be going quite strongly first thing in the morning," he said on Tuesday night.The fire at Lake Wakatipu as seen on Wednesday morning.SUPPLIEDFour helicopters equipped with monsoon buckets were cooling hotspots and dampening the fire perimeter on Wednesday morning, with a fifth helicopter used as an aerial platform to direct the air attack.While overnight conditions had been favourable, the fire had continued to grow and is now estimated at approximately 1200 hectares, McQuillan said.The size is likely to increase if the fire becomes more active due to weather conditions.A Fire and Emergency spokesperson said there were 11 firefighters on the ground, with additional crews arriving throughout the day. It expected up to 25 firefighters to be on the ground.The geography of McKinlays Creek was a ravine, causing it to act like a chimney, funnelling wind and fire upwards, making it difficult for firefighters to access the area, McQuillan had said."The wind funnels up it and draws the fire with it - essentially the smoke and the fire is drawn up the valley and out the top of the mountains, which makes it very hot and impressive in terms of what we're seeing."Helicopter operations have been hindered by the amount of smoke being generated and the fact that the McKinlays Creek area is acting like a chimney, which means that we can only get into the bottom part of it."The fire on Tuesday.FENZ"Conditions on the fireground are benign at the moment but are expected to become more challenging during the morning as the wind is forecast to strengthen."McQuillan said the protection of Walter Peak Station homestead and farm stock remain the priority.Queenstown's mayor John Glover said the blaze was "confronting"."It's very large, very visible, and the fact that we haven't been able to contain it is top of mind for everyone involved in the response."Glover said it was normal for high country stations in the area to have burns this time of year to renew land for Spring - but these could get out of control."It's a real stark reminder of the fact that our hillsides can be dry and if we get a wild fire it can spread quite easily."Glover understood the historic Walter Peak homestead had not been damaged, which he was relieved about.He advised locals to keep boats away from the area, which was across the lake from the central city.Members of the public on the lake are reminded to stay at least 500 metres offshore to keep clear of where our helicopters are operating.This exclusion zone will be monitored by the Harbourmaster and Coastguard throughout the day to ensure public and firefighter safety, the FENZ spokesperson said.Smoke conditions may worsen in some areas on the opposite side of the lake during the day.Residents affected by smoke are advised to keep windows and doors closed and limit exposure where possible.As the day goes on, Glover said he hoped for rain.