‘It was totally out of control’: health warning after Port Hills, Christchurch fire ravaged 30 hectares

A normal night at home for Kester Vos quickly changed when her brother called to say, “Your hill is on fire.”

Vos is one of 10 residents who were unable to access their properties after a large brush fire in Christchurch’s Port Hills, which burned 25 to 30 hectares, destroyed a small shed and generated a public health warning about smoke. The fire has been contained.

The fire started shortly after 11 p.m. Friday, but the cause remains unclear. Fire and Emergency NZ confirmed that it is following positive leads and areas of interest and has located the point of origin.

The Canterbury District Board of Health issued a public health warning about smoke just before 10 a.m. Saturday, and medical health officer Dr. Cheryl Brunton said that people in smoky areas, particularly those with heart or lung conditions, pregnant women, young children and the elderly, should close their windows and doors and reduce outdoor exercise.

Police confirmed around 1 a.m. Saturday that the properties, including Vos’s, had been evacuated.

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“I shot out to take a look [at the fire]and in five minutes he was totally out of control, he was moving very fast, “said Vos.

He owns an 8.5 acre lifestyle block on Port Hills Rd.

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“The police said, ‘You have two minutes to grab what you can,’ so we just took the cars and drove off,” Vos said.

He had lost a barn in the fire, but said it was fortunate there were no machinery there.

“I don’t know exactly how close the fire was [my] home, but it should have been pretty close, “said Vos.

It is not clear what started the fire. Firefighters and Emergencies New Zealand (FENZ), Christchurch Metropolitan Area Commander Dave Stackhouse said “we have some good positive leads” and that there were “areas of concern” just after 9am on Saturday.

He said fire investigators had located the source of the fire, but did not want to reveal the exact location, but said it was in the vicinity of a nearby warehouse.

Two helicopters with rain buckets and 45 firefighters handled the blaze, which had burned between 25 and 30 hectares. Approximately 60 firefighters worked through the night and some flames were visible at 7 am.

Stackhouse said the knocks heard during the fire were likely LPG cylinders in the shed that burned down.

He said firefighting conditions became ideal around 4 a.m. to 5 a.m. Saturday morning and an overpass in the morning was positive.

He said the crews had done a fantastic job preventing the fire from spreading to homes. He said the weather was on their side as only light winds were forecast.

The plan was to create a safe and contained fire zone and get people back to their homes.

Stackhouse hoped to return the residents of Port Hills Rd to their homes by afternoon.

Other residents of Avoca Valley Rd were allowed to return early Saturday.

Granville Denton, who lives on a small street off Avoca Valley Rd, said he was woken up around 1 a.m. when emergency services knocked on the door and told him to pack his bags and get out.

“I saw a lot of smoke and only one rose [and] reddish sky, the flames were at least twenty to twenty feet in the air, ”Denton said.

He left with his dogs and family and stayed at a family bar, he said.

A resident of Avoca Valley Rd said they were evacuated around 2 a.m. Saturday, but were heading home shortly after 7 a.m.

The resident said the evacuation process was well organized and commented, “It is what it is.”