A flooded irrigation ditch, dozens of household buckets, a human chain and an ''exceptional'' community effort helped save at least one house from a large fire at Hawea Flat.
Volunteer firefighters from Lake Hawea, Wanaka, Luggate and Tarras brigades were impressed by the quick-thinking actions yesterday of residents and passers-by.
The Newcastle Rd fire, which spanned three blocks and destroyed a small crib, was started by a spark from a metal-bladed weed-eater about 3.45pm, fire officers said at the scene.
Fuelled by tinder-dry long grass and gusty conditions, the fire raced in a southern direction across a section, destroying the crib, caravan and trailer and some neighbouring sheds.
It then travelled several hundred metres further across three rural-residential blocks, jumping two streets and narrowly missing at least three other houses, thanks to the firefighting efforts of those at the scene.
Wellington man Ken Bailey was viewing a nearby section when the fire broke out.
He rushed to the site and helped organise a human chain in which up to 30 neighbours and passers-by worked together to ferry buckets of water from a flooded irrigation ditch across the road, to help prevent the flames spreading to neighbouring properties.
''This community are bloody awesome. They saved that house,'' Mr Bailey said, gesturing towards the brown wooden home next door.
It was one of three houses which had lawns and exterior walls scorched by the flames.
''We can't ask for any better community spirit than that ... That's what's great about New Zealand isn't it? When it gets a bit tough, everyone gets in behind it.''
Wanaka volunteer firefighter Ralph Fegan saw the smoke from Wanaka Airport, where he is manager, and immediately alerted Aspiring Helicopters before heading to the scene.
Once there, Mr Fegan was impressed with the community response.
''I've never seen anything like it. It's absolutely brilliant. To see a team of local people, mostly women I might add, they kept going and going and going. This is pretty exceptional today.''
Lake Hawea Volunteer Fire Brigade officer in charge Brent Arthur agreed the community had done an ''amazing'' job.
''Without them it just would have been a different story. They were already here with buckets etc when we turned up.''
About eight fire appliances, 35 trained firefighters and two helicopters with monsoon buckets fought the blaze, mainly from the south side, while the community continued to dampen the area where it originated.
Lake Hawea deputy chief fire officer Kevin Capell said the fire was the biggest he had seen in the area in about 15 years where houses had been threatened.
The time taken for the flames to spread about 30m across the section to the crib was probably only about half a minute, he said.
Albert Town couple Murray and Sue Anderson were checking on their son's sheep at Hawea Flat when they joined the throng of people who swung into action after seeing the black smoke and flames billowing from the property.
''I just arrived here and I had two buckets on the back that I'd been feeding the chooks with and I thought `I might be able to do something','' Mr Anderson said, between water runs.
Nick Coll, who lives just a few doors down the road from the fire, also helped out for a couple of hours and said he would ''like to think everyone would help me if it was mine''.
Property owner Zac Morris, who was operating the weedeater on his section when the fire started, declined to talk to media.
He is an experienced climber and adventurer who works in the film industry and is understood to live part-time at the property.
Others at the scene said, as the fire spread, Mr Morris helped members of the public remove valuables from neighbouring houses - believed to be unoccupied at the time - and reportedly rescued a dog from the next-door property.
One neighbour said Mr Morris was understandably ''really shaken'' after losing everything in the fire, including computers used for his film work.
Volunteer fire brigades were stood down about 6.30pm when the Otago Rural Fire Authority took over management of the scene.
Rural firefighters and Department of Conservation crews were to remain on site throughout the evening to monitor hot spots.
The incident was yet another reminder to not take chances in the district's extreme fire risk conditions, Mr Arthur said.
''It just shows that even if you're being cautious you've got no control over a fire.''
One firefighter was treated at the scene for smoke inhalation and another for a minor finger injury caused by a dropped suction pipe.
A rural fire officer stayed overnight to keep an eye on a doused haystack fire in Patearoa, near Ranfurly, to ensure strong winds forecast today do not reignite the flames.
Three fire appliances from Ranfurly put out the fire in a 50m by 20m haystack after a callout at 4.30pm yesterday.
A Fire Service spokeswoman said the haystack was on a ''clear gravel paddock''.
