Auckland fire: heart of city shuts down as firefighting effort enters day three

Hundreds of firefighters brought in to tackle blaze as Jacinda Ardern promises to restore venue

A fire in Auckland's city centre continues to smoulder 48 hours after thousands of people were evacuated from the heart of New Zealand's largest city.

Hundreds of firefighters have been working in shifts to put out the blaze on the roof of the SkyCity convention centre, with reinforcements called in from towns as far away as Hamilton, two hours to the south, which provided 30 firetrucks.