FLEEING THE FLAMES
Kiwi heroes fighting for Nelson
NELSON’S ARK
As animal welfare advocate Carolyn Press-Mckenzie stood on the lush manicured lawns of Wellington’s Government House on Waitangi Day, dressed to the nines, her mind was hundreds of kilometres away. She was distracted by the plight of animals on a hoarder’s property in a valley threatening to erupt into flames near Nelson.
Finding it increasingly difficult to enjoy the garden tea party, the 49-year-old instructed her husband to take her straight to the airport, swinging by an outdoor store to change from her glamorous outfit into one that would stand her in good stead for messy business.
“I rushed into Macpac and said, ‘Where is the sales rack? I don’t have a lot of money, but if you could just dress me − including underwear!’ Everyone just rushed around throwing clothes on me and I’m still wearing the same ones,” confesses Carolyn to the
Weekly days later.
Arriving in Nelson barely 24 hours after the wildfire broke out, the founder of Helping
You Help Animals (HUHA) had experience establishing shelters and relocating animals in times of natural disaster but realised this would be on a scale never before seen in New Zealand.
As strong winds fanned the towering flames and hundreds of residents in outlying Nelson
communities were put on standby to evacuate, Carolyn convinced government officials of the need for a temporary animal refuge, and transformed the city’s showgrounds into a sanctuary for the livestock and pets of evacuees.
She says everyone was carrying a great deal of stress, with many people not knowing if they had a home to return to at the height of the fire crisis.
“It was unbelievably huge. And it was emotional. The people were broken, but I was incredibly proud because we built a facility in a matter of days and grew it as the people kept coming.”
She says 955 animals, ranging from a single turtle through to 48 quails, were cared for at the height of the emergency.
“We did it the way we do it at home, dogs playing in groups with swimming pools and toys and not a stark barrack-like situation. It was, ‘Come in, there is love here, your animals will be safe,’” tells Carolyn.
She says what made her so proud was building something so functional that created less stress for people in the area.
“People could walk in and breathe a sigh of relief because suddenly they could see what we built and they could trust us. I don’t know how I would feel passing my pet over if I was in a state of distress − it would be
huge for anybody but we demonstrated trust in our actions and what they could see in front of them, which meant they could go away and deal with what they needed to deal with.”
With a State of Civil Emergency still in effect two weeks after the fire broke out and firefighters expected to be damping down hotspots until the middle of March, Carolyn says she will stay at the centre until the last animal is able to return home.
“We’re starting to see the light at the end of the tunnel at the moment, which is great,” she says. “I’ve started it so
I’m going to finish it for sure.”