A Hawke's Bay contracting company is calling for public help for two of their workers who lost all their possessions in a suspicious fire that gutted their rental property.
Arai Ngawhare and Blair Winyard rented a property beside the railway tracks between Te Awa Ave and State Highway 51 nearAwatoto, and fire blazed through it on November 2.
The fire, in a house at the rear of a Te Awa Ave section, opposite Maraenui Golf Course and facing the railway line and the ocean, was alight when the first crews from Fire and Emergency NZ arrived.
A 22-year-old man has since been charged with wilfully setting fire to the property.
The flames could be seen across Napier as firefighters fought initially to protect neighbouring houses, one barely 1.5 metres from the burning home.
The smoke enshrouded Te Awa Ave and the golf course, and also billowed at times across the SH51 (formerly SH2).
The couple, who both work as part of Higgins Contractors "cyclic crew", got out safely because of working smoke alarms.
Higgins contract manager Dale Nicholls said the pair were part of the Higgins Hawke's Bay family and he had set up a Givealittle page to help them get back on their feet.