446 days ago

Large blaze in central Christchurch

The Team from Neighbourly.co.nz

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?

More messages from your neighbours
21 hours ago

Poll: Are Kiwis allergic to “exuberance”? 🥝

The Team from Neighbourly.co.nz

In The Post’s opinion piece on the developments set to open across Aotearoa in 2026, John Coop suggests that, as a nation, we’re “allergic to exuberance.”

We want to know: Are we really allergic to showing our excitement?

Is it time to lean into a more optimistic view of the place we call home? As big projects take shape and new opportunities emerge, perhaps it’s worth asking whether a little more confidence (and enthusiasm!) could do us some good.

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Are Kiwis allergic to “exuberance”? 🥝
  • 41.9% Yes
    41.9% Complete
  • 31.7% Maybe?
    31.7% Complete
  • 26.4% No
    26.4% Complete
356 votes
11 hours ago

Opawa Community Op Shop..

Alan from Beckenham

Hi Folks.

The Community Op Shop will be closing on Thursday 18th Dec at 4pm and reopening Tuesday 3rd Feb at 10am.

We will however be open this Friday the 19th for 2 hours from 4pm - 6pm to be followed by carol singing in the Church grounds.

Look forward to seeing you all.

Thank you all for your wonderful support during the year. Have a great Christmas and see you in 2026!

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8 days ago

2025 has been massive. The Luxon-led Government's attacks on workers, on Te Tiriti, on pay equity, on educators, on health workers, and on the public service, have been relentless.

Leslie from Avonside - Dallington

But despite everything thrown at working people, we've also seen some massive wins. We've fought back together with strike action. We've unified with days of action. We have focused on what matters. Make no mistake, 2026 will be wild, and we are ready for it! Source - New Zealand Council of Trade Unions