A man died after the car he was driving hit shops in Papatoetoe, South Auckland, about 4.30am yesterday.
The crash, on the corner of Portage and Station Rds, ruptured a gas main which caused problems for firefighters battling the blaze while gas was leaking.
The main shop hit was a laundromat, which was the scene of a crash in February when a drink driver lost control of his car.
Firefighters took more than an hour to get the blaze under control.
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