Source: Radio New Zealand
There have been at least eight fatal house fires since July last year. VIKTOR CAP / 123RF
There are fears New Zealanders are becoming more complacent around fire safety at home, Fire and Emergency (FENZ) says.
The number of fatal house fires increased to 17 for the year ending June 2025, compared to 13 in the 12 months prior.
There have been at least eight fatal house fires since July last year.
FENZ risk reduction and investigations manager Pete Gallagher said there had been a concerning uptick in devastating blazes beginning in the kitchen.
“We saw a decline in this a few years ago and now it’s starting to rise back up again.,” he said.
“And that’s a real concern because pretty much everyone’s involved in the cooking process at some time in their life. And so it’s really important that they understand that that’s a high-risk activity and they need to be aware of the dangers it creates.”
FENZ said people over 65 were at greater risk.
“That’s possibly just due to not being able to react perhaps as quickly to the circumstances around them. Which is why it’s so important that everyone has a smoke alarm so that they get the early warning that something’s gone wrong and they can start making their way out of the house as early and as quickly as possible.”
Although it was difficult to pinpoint the reasons for an increase in cooking-related fires, Gallagher felt a “complacency attitude” had potentially crept in.
“Of course, as we come into the summer months and people are cooking outside, they’re cooking on barbecues. These are very high-heat items. The grill plate is often a lot hotter than the surface of a stove.
“And so we need to adjust our cooking habits a little bit and associate the risk to the surroundings from the cooking method we’re using.”
People cooking outside with a barbecue needed to ensure it was not pushed hard-up against the house, and allow an air gap.
FENZ urged people to visit the Check It’s Alright website before cooking on a campfire.
“We need to keep an eye on the weather conditions to make sure the wind doesn’t get up. And if it does, then it’s time to extinguish the fire and make sure it’s well out before we leave the camping area.”
Fires caused by lithium-powered batteries also remained an ongoing problem, Gallagher said. FENZ reported last year fires linked to lithium batteries had more than doubled in four years.
“These devices contain a huge amount of energy. And when that’s released, it can happen quite violently, causing a very rapid fire growth or rapid fire development.”
The summer period was particularly risky for lithium-powered devices, as they did not like being exposed to excessive heat.
“Just think about not leaving the cellphone sitting in the car in the hot sun, because that can cause the lithium battery to malfunction within the phone,” Gallagher said.
“Laptop, scooter, whatever the device is, that can cause a real significant fire very, very quickly.”
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
