Petrol thieves are being accused of accidentally setting a $50,000 piece of orchard equipment on fire after they tried to siphon petrol from it on Wednesday night.
Katikati fire fighters were called to the fire at Kauri Pak on Kauri Point Road, just north of Katikati, at about 10pm.

Kauri Pak owner Hugh Moore next to his $50,000 hydraladder, which was destroyed after petrol thieves accidentally set it on fire.

Kauri Pak owner Hugh Moore says it appears the thieves were siphoning petrol from a number of his hydraladders, or cherry pickers, which were parked in his avocado orchard.
He says it looks as though they were smoking cigarettes after they finished siphoning the petrol and accidentally lit the hydraladder on fire.
Hugh is unsure of the amount of petrol the thieves managed to steal.
Katikati senior constable John Fitzgerald says the offenders may have sustained burns from the fire.
A second hydraladder also caught fire but the machine only sustained damage to its tyres.
“They left containers of fuel behind and must have runoff as soon as the fire started. I hope they got burnt,” says Hugh.
He says there were 20 hydraladder machines scattered throughout the orchard and thieves have continually targeted the machines.
“We’ve got fences up around the place but we’ve had to put up more fencing recently.”
Katikati police also believe the fire was lit accidentally.
“The offenders tried to siphon petrol from the machines and in the process the fire has started,” says John Fitzgerald.
He says partially melted containers carrying the siphoned petrol were found at the scene.
“When you siphon petrol, you usually take it with you but in this case they’ve left it behind.”
Police forensic teams arrived at the orchard on Thursday morning to check for fingerprints.
John says the theft of the petrol and subsequent fire is an unusual case for the Katikati area.
He is warning business owners with petrol powered machinery to be extra vigilant.
“Anything that makes it more difficult for the offender has got to be a good thing.”
Anyone with information relating to this incident can contact Katikati police on 549 0004. Information can also be given anonymously on 0800SPEAKUP.