Pets unaccounted for after Wellington vet clinic engulfed in flames last night

An unknown number of pets are unaccounted for after a fire engulfed a Wellington vet centre and cattery last night.

CareVets Kilbirnie owner Nick Cooper told RNZ cats pulled out of the blaze were given oxygen and taken to an after-hours clinic.

He said he did not know how many cats had survived the blaze or not as they have not been able to get into the building and computers and paperwork were also inside.

There are two apartments above the vets but everyone got out safely, Cooper told RNZ.

Fire and Emergency New Zealand (Fenz) was called to the vet centre in Kilbirnie at 11.50pm last night.

Some of the pets were rescued from the two-storey building but a number remain unaccounted for, a Fenz spokesman said this morning.

“I can’t give you numbers,” the spokesman said.

He said eight appliances and four specialist support vehicles attended the fire, which was extinguished at 2.30am.

Crews remain at the scene this morning dampening down hotspots.

A fire investigator is visiting the scene today, Fenz added.

Sign up to the Daily H, a free newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.