The Auckland Maunga have been besieged by serious fires caused by fireworks over the last 12 months, prompting the
Tūpuna Maunga Authority to take stronger action to protect them.
Fourteen Maunga administered by the Authority will be closed to the public in the evenings during Guy Fawkes week this
year, and every year while fireworks remain available for public sale.
The announcement was first made following the massive fires at Maungarei / Mt Wellington and Maungawhau / Mt Eden on Guy
Fawkes night last year, and was reconfirmed after fireworks caused an enormous blaze which ripped through the crater of
Te Pane o Mataaho / Te Ara Pueru /Fire damage to Māngere Mountain 11 December 2019 - Tūpuna Maunga Authority
Māngere Mountain in December last year, and a further fire on Maungarei / Mt Wellington in April this year.
Just last month yet another fire tore up the lower slopes of Maungarei / Mt Wellington, caused by a group of youths
playing with fireworks.
This year, the following Maunga will be closed Monday 2 November to Sunday 8 November, from 7:30pm through to usual gate
opening times the following day:Matukutūruru / Wiri MountainMaungakiekie / One Tree HillMaungarei / Mount WellingtonMaungawhau / Mount EdenMaungauika / North HeadŌwairaka / Te Ahi-kā-a-Rakataura / Mount AlbertŌhinerau / Mount HobsonŌhuiarangi / Pigeon MountainŌtāhuhu / Mount RichmondPukewīwī / Puketāpapa / Mount RoskillTe Kōpuke / Tītīkōpuke / Mount St JohnTakarunga / Mount VictoriaTe Pane o Mataaho / Te Ara Pueru / Māngere MountainTe Tātua a Riukiuta / Big King
Security staff and volunteers will patrol the Maunga and explain the closures to visitors. Any visitors on the Maunga
when the gates are closed will be asked to leave.
Paul Majurey, Chair of the Tūpuna Maunga Authority says the continuous threat of fireworks to the Maunga has been well
documented and the closures will come as no surprise.
“The Tūpuna Maunga Authority has responsibilities under health and safety legislation to ensure the safety of visitors
to the Maunga. But there’s a bigger picture here around respecting our heritage. Most of the Maunga in Tāmaki Makaurau
were important pā settlements, home to our Tūpuna and sites of birth, battle and burial. They are waahi tapu and
regarded by Mana Whenua as taonga tuku iho – treasures handed down the generations.
Today, these Maunga are among the most important cultural and natural heritage sites anywhere in New Zealand and are on
the tentative list for
UNESCO World Heritage Status. Protecting them from burning is a straight-forward decision.”
“For the last six years we’ve trusted the public to adhere to the fireworks ban on the Maunga and obey the signage. That
has not worked, and we continue to see fireworks-related fires caused by people who are unable to resist placing
personal fun over public safety and respect for these taonga.
These fires are serious – they cause significant harm and a huge strain on fire and emergency services,” says Majurey.
Fire and emergency crews have unrestricted access to the Maunga via an access code to entrance gates, though the terrain
and distance from water supplies make extinguishing a fire on the Maunga extremely difficult.
The Authority also works proactively with Fire and Emergency New Zealand each fire season to review fire safety plans on
the Maunga and to implement safety measures such as mowing fire breaks between the Maunga and adjoining properties.
In August this year the Authority expressed disappointment in the parliamentary governance and administration select
committee’s failure to ban the private sale of fireworks.
“The select committee had a responsibility here to put measures in place that would take fireworks out of the hands of
those who aren’t capable of using them sensibly, while still allowing the public to enjoy controlled public fireworks
displays. It’s extremely disappointing they did not do that,” said Majurey.
Visit www.maunga.nz for more information about the Tūpuna Maunga Authority.