Large blaze in central Christchurch
A large blaze broke out in a commercial building in the central city early Thursday morning.
What you need to know:
- Residents in parts of Christchurch are now being warned to stay indoors and keep windows shut.
- Thick smoke billowed through the sky after the blaze broke out in Sydenham.
- Dozens of firefighters were tackling the fire, which is in a building just off Colombo St housing a number of companies including Phoenix Recycling and vehicle certification company Auto Inspection Services.
- The fire is understood to have mainly affected the eastern part of the building, housing Auto Inspection Services. Its owner said he believed the fire had started in the adjacent recycling centre and had spread to his firm’s part of the building.
- Fire and Emergency New Zealand incident controller Dave Key said the fire was believed to have started in a pile of rubbish, and that the main damage from the blaze was to the building itself. The blaze was contained shortly after 8am, but fire crews would be at the scene for the rest of the day, he said.
Keep up to date on Stuff website. Did you see the smoke from your place?
Poll: Would you rather: Christmas in summer forever or winter forever?
Just a bit of a fun poll to get you thinking.
If you had to live out your Christmas days, would you prefer it was a summer Christmas or a winter Christmas?
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61.7% Summer
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36.6% Winter
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1.7% Other - I'll share below
Worst Xmas ever?
There's a a lot of planning that goes into Christmas day and sometimes things just don't go to plan. But it can be a good thing - a family mishap or hilarious memory that you can laugh about in Christmases to come.
Whether you burnt the dinner or were stranded at an airport...
Share your Christmas mishaps below!
Suellen’s sweet Christmas tradition
The festive season is always a great excuse to indulge your sweet tooth, and this time of year poses the perfect opportunity to bring a real showstopper to the Christmas table.
For Suellen’s family, that showstopper is Croquembouche, an impressive tower of cream puffs bound together with spun sugar that is popular at weddings in France and Italy.
What began as a birthday treat at a local French café has become a cherished Christmas tradition for Suellen and her 17-year-old twin granddaughters, Ellie and Sadie. Every year, the trio gather in Suellen’s apartment at William Sanders Village to cook this festive dessert - a holiday highlight they all treasure.
Click read more for the recipe.
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