Fire and Emergency New Zealand (FENZ) says members of the public should not be concerned about a large fire near Mount Barker, visible from the township and surrounding areas.

The fire is a controlled burn-off and FENZ was warned about it, a FENZ spokesperson told the Wānaka App.

It is “a very large burning area” - between 80 to 100 hectares, they said, but “purely a land management operation”.

There are “a few helicopters working there,” the spokesperson added.

A second incident this afternoon also turned out to be no cause for concern.

Customers were evacuated from New World Wānaka and fire trucks were called, however the incident turned out to be a “false alarm”, the spokesperson said.

PHOTO: Billy Dean