Fire crews and helicopters are on standby across central Otago as temperatures hit the mid-30s, and rising winds and low humidity levels push the risk of fire to extreme levels.
It comes as a drought has been officially declared for the whole of Southland and parts of Otago including Clutha, Queenstown Lakes and central Otago.
The regions have had almost no rain since November and farmers are struggling to cope. Jamie Cowan is an Incident Controller for Fire and Emergency based in Clyde. He describes the scene to Susie Ferguson.
