A firebug has been at work in the Kaipara District, setting a string of scrub fires along State Highway 12.

Fire Service shift manager Jaron Phillips says the first suspicious flare-up was at Paraore, just outside Dargaville.

It was spotted soon after 2am yesterday.

“Continuing further north up State Highway 12, we’ve been finding fires up until 4am, it’s a series of five fires that appear to be deliberately lit,” says Mr Phillips.

– Newstalk ZB