Volunteer firefighters, most of them from Te Anau, are fighting a fierce fire which has heavily damaged a rural property at Kakapo Rd, 5kms northeast of Te Anau.
Firefighters were alerted at 6.46pm, and three fire appliances and three water tankers were used to fight the fire in the single-level, 120sqm house for more than two hours, near an intersection with State Highway 94, a New Zealand Fire and Emergency spokesman said.
Water supply was limited in the area and the tankers were used to shuttle water to the house from a nearby swampy area, he said.