Efforts to contain a scrub fire in a hard-to-reach valley at Whangārei Heads continue this morning.

Residents of two homes that were evacuated on Thursday were able to return home overnight.

Incident controller Graeme Quensell said the aim today was to blacken the fire’s perimeter to contain it and stop any spread.

Two helicopters will be working today alongside 40 ground crew.

Speed restrictions are in place for the Whangārei Heads area which Quensell asked the public to adhere to.

Fire personnel would be dealing with rough and steep terrain.

There was also a potential hazard in the contours of the countryside which created “self-generated wind,” Quensell said.

“Across the day the weather conditions will become less favourable, but we’re also dealing with a change in wind conditions within the fire grounds.”

Work would continue throughout the weekend once the fire was contained to reduce any other risks, he said.

Helicopter operations were slightly delayed this morning as crews worked around Whangārei airport flight times, he said.

Yesterday flights were redirected to Kerikeri and buses were organised for those needing to get to Whangārei.

The fire broke out around 12.30pm yesterday in a narrow gully with farmland on one side and heavy fuels - gorse, tea tree and old tōtara - on the other.

At its height, between eight and 10 properties were threatened by the fire but protected by helicopter’s efforts.

A fire investigator will be on site today to determine the cause.

In the meantime, Quensell reminded the public that Northland moved into restricted fire season this morning.

“This means that anyone who wants to light an outdoor fire will need a fire permit authorised by Fire and Emergency, which can be applied for at checkitsalright.nz.

As we have seen with this fire, it takes a large number of fire brigades, many of them volunteers, with supporting resources and aircraft to contain and control fires in Northland, so it’s hoped introducing these restrictions now will help us avoid further wildfires."

- Northern Advocate