High rural firefighting costs for the Port Hills firesOwnz Productions Fires burn along ridges of the Port Hills in Christchurch. The staggering cost of fighting February's destructive Port Hills fires is becoming clearer, with the rural firefighting service revealing its bill totals $7.9 million. READ MORE:* Port Hills fires officially extinguished 66 days after they started* Christchurch's Port Hills fires not out yet but review on the way* Port Hills fire recovery plans drafted by May* Damage assessment, rebuild plans begin at Christchurch Adventure Park after Port Hills fire* An uneasy peace behind the cordons of Christchurch's Port Hills fires* Fire heads down the valley to the Christchurch Adventure ParkTwo separate fires began on February 13 and raged uncontrolled in the hills before joining to form one huge blaze, which included much of the then eight-week-old Christchurch Adventure Park. BRADEN FASTIER/STUFF The rural fire costs for battling the Port Hills fires was $7.9 million. RURAL FIREFIGHTING COSTS BREAKDOWNAircraft - $2,166,098Rural Fire Authority personnel - $1,794,081Rural Fire Authority equipment and vehicles - $795,573Contracted firefighting personnel - $568,224Contracted firefighting equipment - $80,882Consumables, e.g cordons, investigation - $1,000,059Fire retardant - $913,313Heavy machinery - $629,086Total - $7,947,317- Stuff

Source: Stuff July 06, 2017 01:59 UTC