Lake Ōhau resident David Stone says he feels "stripped naked" and doesn't know if he'll be able to stay in the region he'd fallen in love with after Sunday's devastating fire claimed "everything".
Multiple homes were flattened in the blaze which has burnt around 5000 hectares of land.
Residents were woken in the early hours of Sunday morning after a a siren was activated. Neighbours phoned around and went door-to-door to ensure everyone got out.
"We got out so quickly. It was either stay and take the risk or run and we pretty well ran and have very little with us," Stone recalled.
"We'd seen the flames over the western side - they were huge. There were gale force winds, more than gale force winds, it was incredible.
"There was disbelief, I had never obviously been in a situation like this and few people have, but it was incredible."
Fire crews worked through the night to manage any flare-ups. (Source: Other)
While Stone joked he didn't stick around to measure, Fire and Emergency New Zealand has said the flames towered 20 metres above the trees.
As the fire tore through the area, Stone said he didn't hear anything until a neighbour came banging on his door, though.
"We could have been dead, we really could have. It sounds over-dramatic but it's true."
Stone was among those who lost their home in the tragedy.
However, this morning he told TVNZ1's Breakfast host John Campbell the hurt was deeper than just material objects lost.
"A bit flat. I feel that we were stripped naked of everything, not just physical things," he said.
The settlement, which is about 30 minutes west of Twizel in the McKenzie Country, was razed by the fire that swept through over the weekend. (Source: Other)
Stone moved to his home six years ago after falling in love with the area while tramping.
Before and after photos show his house, which overlooks a lake and mountain scene, now gutted by the fire.
"It's gone completely, oh, there's a little bit of steel in there," he pointed out.
Stone said the tragedy was still so raw he didn't know if he'd stay in the region, but he's heading to be with family up north soon.
"We've got nothing now, sure we've got a place to go up north but we have nothing, everything is gone, everything that we loved about the place, our personality in that house it's stripped from us."
His message to Kiwis: "Stand in front of your house tonight, close your eyes and imagine nothing there, and then open them and feel very grateful. We can't do that."
No one died in the blaze, but Stone said he knows of someone missing a dog and others missing other pets. As well the area was home to wildlife like kiwi.
"The wildlife here has suffered as much as the people and the buildings," Stone said.
The wildfire destroyed between 40 and 50 structures. (Source: Other)
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