Bushfire threatens David Hayes' property

Bushfires are again threatening the property of prominent horse trainer David Hayes in northeastern Victoria after he and staff spent the night trying to protect it.

Mr Hayes and his staff at Lindsay Park, Euroa, spent most of Tuesday night and early Wednesday morning moving horses away from the fire threat.

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The drama began during the Lindsay Park Christmas party.

“We got an urgently evacuate message and we knew there was a fire in the surrounding hills and if there was a wind change we were going to be in a bit of trouble,” Mr Hayes said.

“I and few of my senior staff all stayed here with the horses and we sat on the border, and we were just stunned how quickly when the wind turned how it engulfed the top part of the property.”

He said they soon headed to a house on the border of the property under threat from the fire and successfully defended it, only to find the fire had spread into the back paddocks.

“We had probably 50 or 60 horses up here, so we had to sort of forget about the property and protect the horses, so we just basically just let them all out, let them run free, and they had a bit of a Lampoon’s Vacation,” he said.

“I was very worried for them, but I was amazed their instincts kicked in and they were able to stay uninjured.”

He said in one paddock the horses were trapped by flames.

“There was no way out …. I watched them, they were very clever, they would sit back and then at the last minute jump over the fire onto the burnt area, and always stayed in the open, not near trees, so they avoided all damage.”

Mr Hayes said it took until 2am to find and catch them all again.

“There is a fine line how far you go – to put yourself in danger or save the horses, but everyone here are horse people and we put the horses first,” he said.

“We were probably protecting between $15 to $20 million worth of horses last night, on a $20 million property, so my life’s work was here.”

Mr Hayes said the fire had damaged much of the outlying and border fencing on the property, but the main infrastructure like stables and houses was undamaged.

But a wind change this afternoon has Lindsay Park in danger once again.

"The wind has changed and they are on high alert back up there at the farm, and all hands are on deck," Mr Hayes' Melbourne stable foreman, Bruno Rouge-Serret, said.

"The horses are all being evacuated off that side of the farm - unfortunately on to the side of the farm that got a bit burnt last night."

Victoria news headlines - December 17