North Canterbury News: January 25, 2024
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NEWS<br />
<strong>North</strong> <strong>Canterbury</strong> <strong>News</strong>, <strong>January</strong> <strong>25</strong>, <strong>2024</strong><br />
Fire ravaged Loburn reflects<br />
The Loburn community is still reeling from the devastation wrought by last Friday’s fire that moved swiftly<br />
through many properties on the Loburn Whiterock Road, fanned by abrisk nor’west wind, leaving acharred<br />
landscape in its wake. Three homes were destroyed, along with sheds, machinery and fences. Offers of<br />
help have poured in. The Waimakariri District Council has opened the Mayoral Relief Fund for people to<br />
make donations which will go directly to residents who lost their homes, and had their properties damaged.<br />
John Cosgrove reports. (More photos after sport).<br />
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The first George Gooderham of Loburn,<br />
knew something wasn't quite right last<br />
Friday afternoon, was when he smelt<br />
smoke while painting his son’s bedroom.<br />
Aquick look outside startled him.<br />
There was dense, black smoke all around<br />
his family home, and roaring streaks of fire.<br />
‘‘I saw one tree on fire, then it quickly<br />
moved to the others lining the property. It<br />
moved so quickly.’’<br />
Shelter belts and hedges around the<br />
property went up in flames, the grass on<br />
their front lawn was ablaze and there was<br />
smoke everywhere.<br />
Luckily acouple of mates appeared and<br />
helped him to quell the grass fires which<br />
were spreading, but they couldn’t do<br />
anything about the old pine shelter belt.<br />
George’s wife Olivia arrived home, just<br />
before the roads through Loburn were<br />
officially closed by police as firefighters<br />
tackled multiple blazes erupting along the<br />
Loburn Whiterock Road.<br />
The fires eventually engulfed 12 hectares<br />
with fire brigades from throughout <strong>North</strong><br />
<strong>Canterbury</strong>and beyond, fighting it on<br />
several fronts for hours. Many members<br />
kept vigil over night and the following days.<br />
‘‘Everything was ablaze. All we had were<br />
buckets and sprinklers,’’ says Olivia.<br />
The arrival overhead of helicopters with<br />
fire buckets started to turn the tide in their<br />
favour.<br />
The helicopters were diverted from a<br />
large fire at Amberley, happening at the<br />
same time.<br />
‘‘They were great. They flew in through<br />
the dense smoke, dipped their buckets in<br />
our pond and dumped the water on top of<br />
the burning trees, putting them out,’’ she<br />
says.<br />
Olivia says it was very scary dealing with<br />
the fires, and watching their neighbours<br />
houses burn.<br />
‘‘Compared to several of our neighbours<br />
we were very lucky.<br />
‘‘I feel for them from the bottom of my<br />
heart as they have lost everything. It was<br />
absolutely gutting watching them burn.’’<br />
All through Friday night, the couple<br />
tackled many small fires on their property<br />
caused by falling embers.<br />
They later praised their community for<br />
helping everyone survive the ordeal.<br />
Many acts of kindness went unnoticed<br />
during Friday’s ordeal, as three homes<br />
including achurch converted into ahome,<br />
and anumber of sheds and out buildings<br />
were destroyed in multiple blazes.<br />
Horses from one property were moved to<br />
neighbouring yards as flames threatened<br />
the owners house. Other farmers rushed in<br />
to help move stock and community<br />
members ran up to an elderly neighbour’s<br />
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Fire damage ... Olivia and George Gooderham walk through their charred property at<br />
Loburn following Friday’s fire.<br />
PHOTO: JOHN COSGROVE<br />
house to help them move their valuables<br />
and eventually save their house.<br />
Fire and Emergency NZ officials later<br />
praised George and Olivia for adopting a<br />
number of landscaping strategies which<br />
helped save their home.<br />
George says when they took over the<br />
property from his parents four years ago<br />
they removed an empty grass paddock in<br />
front of the house.<br />
They replaced it with agolf course<br />
covered in low cut grass. They also<br />
included low flammability plantings in<br />
their landscaping plan, and made sure the<br />
entranceway was wide enough to<br />
accommodate fire engines.<br />
Waimakariri Mayor Dan Gordon,<br />
Kaikoura MP Stuart Smith and senior<br />
FENZ staff visited the site of the fire, and<br />
the Gooderham’s property on Saturday<br />
afternoon.<br />
Many residents who were in the line of<br />
the fire, express huge appreciation for all<br />
the help they received.<br />
Cheese manufacturers, Karikaas<br />
Natural Dairy Products, expressed<br />
‘‘sincere gratitude’’ to all the fire brigades<br />
who helped save the house and factory.<br />
‘‘We are so, so very lucky, it was so close,’’<br />
says manager Diana Hawkins.<br />
‘‘Also we thank, and are grateful for, all<br />
the support from the local and wider<br />
community –and all the offers of help and<br />
support.<br />
‘‘Thanks too, to Mainpower for getting<br />
the power back on, on Saturday afternoon.<br />
‘‘It was fantastic that once they made<br />
everything safe again, that they got power<br />
on to those who could safely be connected.’’<br />
Steve Wallace is grateful for all the work<br />
that was done on their property.<br />
‘‘Special thanks to FENZ, Police, Civil<br />
Defence, helicopter crews, the Mayor,<br />
council staff, MainPower and all other<br />
people involved,’’ he says.<br />
Mayor Dan Gordon has met with<br />
residents, Fire and Emergency NZ, fire<br />
firefighters, including members of<br />
volunteer brigades, and Civil Defence<br />
welfare volunteers, since the fires took<br />
place.<br />
‘‘Over the weekend I’ve been meeting<br />
with families who lost their homes, and<br />
Loburn locals who had their properties<br />
damaged. The extent is severe.<br />
Recovering from something this tragic<br />
will take time, support, and resources,’’<br />
he says.<br />
Since the event, community members<br />
have rallied and there’s areal desire to<br />
pitch in and help.<br />
The council in response has opened<br />
up the Mayoral Relief Fund so anyone<br />
can donate funds that will go directly to<br />
those who are the most affected.<br />
The Mayoral Relief Fund provides<br />
emergency financial support in<br />
response to major disasters that cause<br />
significant damage and disruption.<br />
Donations can be made via internet<br />
banking to account 010877012922200.<br />
Please include ‘Loburn Fire’ in your<br />
reference details.<br />
The Loburn community is working to<br />
identify and coordinate aresponse to<br />
specific needs, with inkind support and<br />
offers of help. Visit facebook.com/<br />
groups/7<strong>25</strong>675139530381, or search<br />
Loburn Fire Recovery on Facebook to<br />
find out more about their needs.<br />
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