National Headquarters
Fire and Emergency New Zealand
National Headquarters
Spark Central, Level 7
42-52 Wil is Street
Wel ington Central
Wel ington 6011
Phone +64 4 496 3600
18 May 2026
Ref: 21295
S Reynolds
[FYI request #34256 email]
Tēnā koe S
We refer to your request of 26 March 2026 to Fire and Emergency New Zealand requesting
information relating to the number, status and history of brigades since 2020. Your request has
been considered under the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA), and we copy and respond to each
aspect of your request below.
1. Please provide a list of all fire brigades and stations (urban volunteer, rural volunteer,
composite, and career) as at 1 July 2020, including for each:
•
Brigade/station name
•
Station identifier or callsign
•
Region or district
•
Brigade type (career, composite, urban volunteer, rural volunteer) Operational status
as at that date
2. Current brigade and station register
•
Please provide the same information as at the date of this request.
Please find attached, as
Appendix One to this response, a spreadsheet showing all fire brigades at
1 July 2020 and at 26 March 2026.
3. Status changes since 1 July 2020
•
Please provide a record of any brigade or station that has, since 1 July 2020:
•
Been disestablished or closed
•
Been merged with or absorbed into another brigade or station Changed brigade type
or classification Been renamed or assigned a new station identifier Been placed on
reduced operational status or stood down
•
For each entry, please include the date the change took effect, the region or district,
and the reason recorded for the change.
Please find attached, as
Appendix Two to this response, the requested information broken down
by region.
4. Decision-making framework
•
Please provide any policy, procedure, guideline, or internal framework that governs
how Fire and Emergency identifies, assesses, and implements the merger,
consolidation, or closure of a brigade or station. This includes any criteria used to
determine whether a brigade or station should be subject to review, and the
consultation process required before a decision is made.
Decisions regarding merging, consolidating or closing a brigade or station are made by the
respective Region Manager. Given the infrequency of such changes and the specific individual
considerations required, there is no existing policy or procedure. Any decisions are made in
consultation with the brigade, service delivery planning teams, regional personnel and the local
community. For this reason, this aspect of your request is refused under section 18(e) of the OIA,
as the document al eged to contain the information requested does not exist.
5. Reviews or proposals since 1 July 2020
•
Please provide a list of any brigades or stations that have been subject to a formal
review, proposal, or Tactical Resource Plan relating to potential merger, consolidation,
or closure since 1 July 2020, regardless of whether that process resulted in a change.
Please include the outcome or current status of each.
Please see the table below showing brigades subject to a review or proposal since 1 July 2020:
Brigade
Current Status
Taupo Bay Volunteer
Consistently low brigade membership against establishment and
Fire Brigade
reducing calls for assistance. Being reviewed for viability.
Karikari Volunteer Fire
Brigade
Proposal of merger with Rangiputa Volunteer Fire Brigade.
Rangiputa Volunteer
Fire Brigade
Proposal of merger with Karikari Volunteer Fire Brigade.
Te Kopuru Volunteer
Brigade
Proposal to change brigade categorisation from Urban to Rural.
Okiwi Volunteer Fire
Brigade
Proposal of merger with Tryphena Volunteer Fire Brigade.
Kaitoke Volunteer Fire
Brigade
Proposal of merger with Tryphena Volunteer Fire Brigade.
Tryphena Volunteer
Fire Brigade
Proposal of merger with Okiwi and Kaitoke Volunteer Fire Brigades.
You have the right to seek an investigation and review by the Ombudsman of this decision.
Information about how to make a complaint is available
at www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or
freephone 0800 802 602.
We trust that the information being provided is of assistance. If you require further information,
please email [FENZ request email]
Please note that because of the identified public interest in the information that you have
requested, we intend to publish this response (with your personal details removed) on our
website.
Nāku noa, nā
Aidan Saunders
Manager, Information Requests
