Regional office running hot

FIRE CENTRE: At the new fire service regional office in Kerikeri are, from left, fire safety officer Lindsay Murry, of the Kaeo brigade, iwi liaison officer WayneMartin, of Kawakawa, volunteer support officer Colin Kitchen, of Kaitaia, administrative support officer Mike Fleet, of Kerikeri, and area manager Allan Kerrisk, who moved to Kerikeri from Whangarei.

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The New Zealand Fire Service regional office is now well established in Homestead Ave, Kerikeri, with four paid officers and a volunteer looking after 13 volunteer fire brigades in an area that covers the boundaries of the Far North District.

The office, opened in February, is open to the public for fire-related queries, although the volunteer brigades remain the face of the service, area manager Allan Kerrisk says.

"We look after operations, the business side, such as budgeting, risk management, maintenance of skills and our schools programme.

"We're happy to answer questions about fire safety," he says.

Unattended cooking remains one of the biggest contributing factors to fires, he says.

- Bay Chronicle