Wairarapa fire brigades’ quick response has prevented a switchboard fire from razing an old Martinborough villa to the ground.
Martinborough, Greytown, and Featherston crews responded to the blaze shortly after 4pm on Wednesday.
Chief fire officer Jake Hawkins said a minute later, and they would have been battling a house fire.
”It had the potential to go pear-shaped quite quickly. The guys did a great job.”
He said a switchboard fire had spread into the roof cavity, filling the house with smoke and devastating an entranceway.
“It was a heavily involved fire when we got there. We hit it with a high-pressure hose and knocked holes in the ceiling to get at the roof.”
The crew also removed iron from the roof to extinguish the fire from above.
“If no one was home, it could have burnt to the ground.”
Fire crews attended for more than an hour battling the blaze and ensuring hotspots were extinguished.
