Port Hills Fire, Christchurch 2024

16 February 2024/ByMark/Life, Photography

On Wednesday 14th February 2024, Valentine’s Day, a fire broke out on the Port Hills above Christchurch. The next morning I left early, on a commute from Rangiora to Christchurch, with the smoke growing larger in my windscreen as I approached the city. It didn’t take long before you could see lines of fire, with flames flaring higher than the trees at time.

I arrove at work at sunrise, around 6:50 am, and watched the first of the helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft return to fight the fire.

The panorama shows the fire on the Port Hills at first light, Thursday 15th February 2024.

Without the support of the aircraft overnight, there are flames flaring up to four storeys high in a valley not far from a residential area.

Panoramic photo of the 2024 Port Hills fire, Christchurch.

Dawn brought with it an army of aircraft, and a few hours later the fire – in this area at least – appeared to be almost completely subdued. A dramatic change from the scene first thing that morning.

Video taken at sunrise showing flames flaring up to a huge height, not far from a residential suburb.

Helicopters fighting the fires on the Port Hills in Christchurch on 15 February 2024.

The panorama series gives the illusion that there are three aircraft lined-up just to the left of the main area of smoke, but actually it’s one helicopter in three positions on approach to the flames.

Heliopters fighting the February 2024 Port Hills fire, Christchurch.

As one helicopter leaves to refill, another helicopter approaches to douse the flames. It must have been an incredible relief to see these aircraft returning after a night of approaching flames.

Maybe the future will bring with it new technology that will allow aircraft to fight fires at night in safety. Although with the death of a helicopter pilot from the previous fire in this area still fresh in people’s minds, this is not something anyone wants to take lightly.

Coffee while watching the fires on the Port Hills.

A surreal start to the day, drinking a coffee while watching aircraft on their runs, dropping huge buckets of water onto the flames.

It was hard not to feel guilty, just going about your day while these crews worked so hard and displaced residents and farmers worried about their homes and livelihoods.

The following screenshots taken on the Flightradar app and show flightpaths of just four of the – at times up to 15 – helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft fighting the fires on Wednesday 14th February at 8:45 pm. This series shows the huge area that the aircraft were covering, either to put out flames or to lay down fire retardant to protect key areas and prevent the fire from spreading further.

Flightradar screenshot showing flight path of helicopters fighting the Port Hills fire.

Port Hills fire subdued by firefighters.

At 2:30 pm of the same day, this photo taken on my phone shows just how much the fire has been subdued by firefighters. Incredible work.

While nothing spectacular compared to other media out there, including that which has been taken by the fire crews themselves, I provided my photos and video to Canterbury Fire and Emergency for their review (they had asked for photos and video taken half an hour either side of the fire first being reported to help determine the cause) as well as to the New Zealand Herald and Stuff news organisations.

Follow Fire and Emergency’s updates on the Canterbury Fire and Emergency Facebook Page and find out more about volunteering to help, as well as tips to prevent fires, on their website.

Port Hills Fire, Christchurch 2024

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