Video filmed inside a house that burnt to the ground at Avodah Spiritual Retreat in Kaikōura shows the speed at which the fire spread in howling winds.
The house, church and other buildings at the residential respite centre were engulfed by fire in minutes, as flames and embers sped down the hillside fuelled by 150 kilometre-per-hour winds on Tuesday afternoon.
The house was among five homes and at least nine other buildings that were destroyed.
Avodah director John Bruce said by the time people on the property smelt smoke, the fire was already bearing down, with the house on fire in 10 minutes.
"The whole house was closed up because of the high winds but all of a sudden they could smell smoke and then they could see it coming through the trees," he said.
"When the wind comes off that mountain it just barrels straight down towards the sea. It pretty much arced a line to the water. A lot of people have lost their homes and lost everything, its devastating."
Avodah before the fire. Photo:
Avodah after the fire. Photo: John Bruce
Avodah had been at the site for three-and-a-half years running programmes for people with trauma and addiction issues, but the church on the property had served the Kaikōura Vineyard congregation for 30 years, he said.
"The church was quite a big building, they [vineyard] built that when they bought the land. The vineyard board are pretty devastated, they put a lot of effort into that. It took 30 years to create and half-an-hour to burn down."
Bruce said Avodah had recently dropped the number of residential places from 13 to six, halving its staff and restructuring the programme.
Accommodation at Avodah before the fire. Photo:
Accommodation at Avodah after the fire. Photo: John Bruce
"The service we provided went big and soon got overloaded. The need for it is huge, so we'll definitely rebuild," he said.
As well as the house and church, the fire destroyed sheds, supplies and a shipping container converted to accommodation.
"A lot of the residents we get are at the bottom, so we clothe them and get them back on track, but it's all gone," he said.
"Material stuff can be replaced, but people can't."
Bruce said the trust that managed the centre was determined to rebuild.
"We've got faith and we've got hope, that's enough. The phoenix rises from the ashes, so it's apt. From this something better will come, something stronger and more robust, and more prepared for all sorts of events. We'll take this into account for the next build and be a bit more protected against the elements," he said.
"We knew it was a high wind zone but didn't expect there to be embers flying through that wind."
Several churches had contacted the vineyard congregation since the fire offering them space to gather, he said.
A Fire and Emergency spokesperson said the fires were contained by Thursday afternoon but severe winds had forced crews to abandon work dampening hotspots and felling dangerous trees to take shelter as trees were uprooted around them.
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