Wildfire forces evacuation of thousands of people in NZ's South Island

Thousands of people were evacuated on Sunday from New Zealand's South Island due to a wildfire that began six days ago. The blaze, which began near the city of Nelson, is now threatening the town of Wakefield, the BBC reported.

A state of emergency has been declared in the district of Tasman. Strong winds were expected, and officials warned that Sunday could be a "critical danger point" for the fire. The blaze is thought to be the worst forest fire in New Zealand since 1955. Twenty-three helicopters and two planes have been deployed to tackle the blaze. Rain forecast for the area on Tuesday is expected to miss the fire zone.