Auckland and Northland have moved to a restricted fire season until further notice

That means no open-air fires can be legally lit unless a fire permit has been approved.

The restriction covers the whole of Northland, and the entire Auckland region, excluding the Hauraki Gulf Islands and parts of North Waikato.

Fire and Emergency spokesperson Ron Devlin says high westerly winds are already causing spikes in Northland where the fire danger's extreme.

He says if a fire occurred in the region it will be very difficult to control - and weather forecasts for Auckland show little to no rain in the next seven days.