Walter Peak Fire Grows To 1200 Hectares

The Walter Peak fire has grown to an estimated 1,200 hectares, and firefighters are warning it could get bigger.

Operations resumed at 7am this morning, with four helicopters running monsoon bucket runs to cool hotspots and dampen the perimeter. A fifth is up as an aerial platform directing the air attack. Eleven firefighters were on the ground at the start of the day, with more crews coming in to bring that number to 25 by day's end.

Assistant District Commander Nic McQuillan says the protection of Walter Peak Station homestead and farm stock remain the priority.

Overnight conditions were relatively favourable, but the fire kept spreading anyway. Fire and Emergency New Zealand is clear-eyed about where things could head — the size is likely to increase if the fire becomes more active due to weather conditions.

Anyone out on Lake Wakatipu needs to stay at least 500 metres offshore. That exclusion zone is being monitored by the Harbourmaster and Coastguard throughout the day to keep the public and helicopter crews clear of each other.

Smoke could worsen for residents on the far side of the lake as the day heats up. The advice is to keep windows and doors closed and limit exposure where possible.