Dannevirke: Battler Chris finds the perfect place

Chris Bray has a new home, after fire destroyed her Burns St property on April 21. Photo / Christine McKay

Dannevirke's Chris Bray was lucky to escape her burning home in April, but the elderly woman lost all her possessions and her house was a burned-out ruin.

Now after months of fighting for insurance, Ms Bray has found a new haven.

"Battling for what was rightfully mine was worse than the fire," she told the Dannevirke News. "I had to fight for two months and they didn't seem to understand everything from 30 years of collecting had gone up in flames."

The blaze, which started when Ms Bray, in her 70s, tried to light her fire, destroyed everything, leaving her with just the clothes she was wearing at the time. However, the Dannevirke police did manage to salvage some precious photos.

"But everything else was gone and I was determined to make sure I was able to buy a new home," she said. "It was my only chance, otherwise it would have been a tent on the pavement for me."

Ms Bray said her new home was perfect for her, with two bedrooms and a heat pump. However since the fire, ill-health had meant she was not able to open the doors of Retro Haven, her second-hand emporium on Gordon St.