Fire and Emergency received calls for 17 incidents during today’s strike

5 June 2026

Fire and Emergency New Zealand received calls for 17 incidents between midday and 1pm today, Friday 5 June, the thirty-sixth time the New Zealand Professional Firefighters Union (NZPFU) has taken strike action.

Of the 17 incidents, nine were in areas impacted by the strike.

Four of the incidents were false alarms. One was a notification of arcing power lines, and one was a minor lawnmower fire.

One was a medical call which was responded to by Hato Hone St John, as per our contingency arrangements.

One was a request for assistance from the ambulance service, which was subsequently cancelled, and one was a medical call which was responded to by a paid crew which was already deployed at the start of industrial action, along with Hato Hone St John.

“Fire and Emergency remains committed to achieving a fair and sustainable settlement so we can continue working to keep communities safe,” Deputy National Commander Ken Cooper says.

“Fire and Emergency’s most recent offer compares favourably with other public sector settlements and would deliver a 6.2 percent pay increase by November 2027, at a cost of $32.7 million through to July 2028.

“By comparison, the NZPFU’s settlement proposal came to approximately $120 million over the same period. That is not financially realistic when we also have to keep investing in the trucks and equipment our people need to do their jobs safely.

“We continue to call on the NZPFU to call off these reckless strikes while we remain in discussions to progress negotiations. It is irresponsible to put the community at risk while we work to resolve this dispute.

“We acknowledge and appreciate the dedication of the volunteers, Operational Commanders and Communication Centre Managers who manage the strike responses.

“We remind the public that emergency responses will be delayed when strike action takes place,” Ken Cooper says.