A kitten named Blaze has been rescued after falling down a drain in Helensville on the first weekend when the country was at alert level 3.
A Helensville Volunteer Fire Brigade crew was called out on Saturday night to the rescue mission after someone heard the kitten mewing.
The crew posted on their Facebook page that they had "rescued a very small newborn kitten from an underground stormwater drain".
They said the brigade members had suggested naming the kitten Blaze.
Station Officer Chris Macdonald said it took the crew about 30 minutes descending into manholes before successfully rescuing the kitten.
"With the torrent of rain [on Sunday], it would have drowned had it not been heard by a member of the public and rescued by the fire crew," Macdonald said.
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"The kitten, given the name Blaze by the fire crew, was then cared for overnight by one of the brigade members' daughter and has since found its forever home."
The kitten, according to the post, has been adopted by one of the crew's mothers.
Michelle Felstead was named as the person who called the brigade and the crew also thanked Mark Anderson from Vets North for his after-hours advice.