As the sun rose over the SkyCity Convention Centre fire for the third time, day two of the recovery phase began.

Fire and Emergency NZ area commander Murray Binning said crews were locating and extinguishing hot spots on the roof and inside the building.

Meanwhile, life around the site is starting to return to normal. FENZ and Auckland Transport are hoping to start to lift come cordons, and the Sky Tower is due to reopen on Friday.

On Friday morning, FENZ said there had been "no significant developments overnight"

Crews continued to manage a few flare-ups and dampen down hot spots. A drone had been operating with a thermal imaging camera to direct firefighters to the hot spots.

There had been two small flare-ups on Friday morning, which were described as being "expected from time to time".

Earlier, Binning said the fire was still active as of Thursday afternoon, with smoke and flames appearing from time to time. He said the building appeared structurally sound and the roof had not collapsed. However some of the external cladding had caved in, he said.

At the height of the blaze, 135 firefighters were on the scene. That was down to 70 overnight into Friday morning.

FENZ and AT were looking to reduce the cordons around the building by opening some lanes on Friday morning - but commuters were warned the delays weren't over.

It was likely cordons immediately around the building on Wellesley, Nelson and Hobson Streets would continue for some time. The agencies were yet to determine when they could be lifted.

AT was still recommending people in the city centre avoid peak hour traffic and leave extra time, following two days of major morning congestion in the CBD. Spokesperson John Nottage said: "The city is still open for business, but if you are able to time your travel to avoid peak hour traffic, by leaving earlier or later than usual, we advise you to do so."

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