November 08, 2019
Maunga off limits during fireworks season
The chair of the Tūpuna Maunga Authority says Guy Fawkes fires on two maunga looked like something out of a war zone.
After a large fire on the side of Maungarei-Mount Wellington and in the crater of Maungawhau-Mount Eden, the authority says in future access to maunga is banned while fire works are still available for public sale.
Paul Majurey says since taking over responsibility for the Auckland’s maunga in 2014 the authority has used signage, security guards and put out the message use fireworks are banned on them.
But there are people who act with reckless disregard for other mountain users and adjoining properties.
Images of the fire raging on Maungarei highlight the threat.
"And if you didn’t know where it was in the world you could think it was Syria or war zones so you have five and six fire trucks on Maungarei, on Maungawhau, we also found out there was a fire on Takarunga, Mt Victoria. These are massive fires, more than 50 metres wide and growing. In some places the access isn’t so great in that the roads don’t go right to the top of it so these are major major events," Mr Majurey says.
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