Fire evacuee reunited with missing donkeys

Sue Haley thought her donkeys, Stormy and Patchy, had perished in the Port Hills fire.

Donkeys Stormy and Patchy have emerged from the Port Hills fire alive and well.

When the fire roared towards her 11 hectare property at the top of Marley's Hill she had to leave the donkeys to fend for themselves as she barely had time to open the paddock gates before she had to evacuate.

For 10 days she feared the worse but when she was allowed this week to return to her property, which borders the Christchurch Adventure Park, she was delighted to discover the donkeys, which she has owned for more than 20 years, on her front lawn, a little sooty, but seemingly none the worse for their ordeal.

"I couldn't believe my eyes,'' she said. “Their hooves looked a bit blackened but they haven’t been injured in any way.  I thought they would be pretty distressed but they are looking good.’’

Tony Groome, who has been working for the Selwyn District Council helping landowners affected by the fires, was the first to find the donkeys and said they were chomping on dandelions and lavender when they were initially spotted.

“They seemed very happy to see humans,’’ he said.