The fire in a 141-year-old landmark is almost out.
Smoke from the fire could be seen across Auckland. Photo: Twitter / Matt Dwen
Fire and Emergency were called to St Stephen's Presbyterian church in the suburb of Ponsonby just before 3.30pm.
A spokesperson said the bulk of the fire is now extinguished and five fire crews are working to dampen down hot spots in the inner roof void.
Earlier firefighters and 18 trucks were battling the blaze in the roof.
The historic church is registered with Heritage New Zealand.
The building is about 50 metres by 30 metres. There are no reports of injury.
@FireEmergencyNZ @WeatherWatchNZ @WakaKotahiAkNth fire at Ponsonby church pic.twitter.com/Iu8qpVIAu4
— N4V33N (@neweenhere) December 5, 2020
At the height of the blaze multiple road closures were in place in the vicinity of Jervois Road and Shelly Beach Road.
The NZ Transport Agency said the southbound Shelly Beach Rd off-ramp was closed due to the fire.
UPDATE 7:40PM
— Waka Kotahi NZTA Auckland & Northland (@WakaKotahiAkNth) December 5, 2020
The southbound Shelly Beach Rd off-ramp remains CLOSED in Ponsonby, due to a building fire. Please continue using Fanshawe St off-ramp as an alternate route. ^APhttps://t.co/kRVHJEvHFp
According to the Heritage NZ website the church is a Category 2 building and is made of kauri.
St Stephen's Presbyterian Church Photo: Heritage New Zealand
