The owner of a yard that was built over the years brick by brick but was destroyed in minutes when it became an “inferno” has paid tribute to the kindness of those who rallied round to support her and her young children.
Helen du Hearne lost her lorry, her stables and decades’ worth of tack, rugs and equipment when her yard went up in flames on Saturday (26 July). Her horses were all out, so none were harmed.
“I haven’t eaten or slept since,” Helen told H&H. “It’s devastating.”
Helen said she was about to go to bed when her motion-activated CCTV of the yard started pinging at about 11pm.
“All it shows is the gate and I could see a glow,” she said. “I had a gut feeling; I knew the stables were on fire. I opened the door and could see the smoke billowing from the yard, a field away.
“I called 999 and drove across in my pyjamas, and it was just an inferno.”
As Helen got there, she saw that at least her quad bike, parked by the shipping container that served as her tack room, was unmarked.
Horse & Hound Newsletter
Never miss out on the latest happenings in the equestrian world
“But in front of my eyes, that caught fire too,” she said. “It exploded and set fire to the container – and we lost everything.
“We bought the land over 10 years ago and had built it bit by bit; I’d work some overtime and do a bit, sell a horse and do a bit more, and now it’s gone. Every bridle and saddle, rugs we’d won at championships, the bit collection – I didn’t even have a hoofpick or a sponge.”
The lorry was packed for the last day of Pony Club camp on Sunday so everything her children Maisey, 10 and Rory, eight, had in terms of tack and clothing has gone, but Helen said as the whole place was destroyed, it did not matter where it had been.
(Image credit: creditUnknown)
“Maisey has qualified for the British Showjumping National Championships and the Pony Club championships; she’s worked so hard to qualify and she’s got nothing,” she said.
Helen added that she suspects the fire may have been started deliberately.
“I don’t like to think that but I realised afterwards that the shipping container was open, and the lorry, and I hadn’t left them like that,” she said. “The fire brigade thinks it started in the corner of the stables and there was no hay there. There was nothing electrical that could have caused it.”
A fundraising page set up by a friend has reached over £4,000, and Helen said she has been overwhelmed by others’ support.
“The lorry was insured but the premises weren’t,” she said. “We did it all ourselves and now we’ve got to start again. Thankfully the horses are fine but it’s devastating.
“But the community has been amazing; I’ve had people offering lifts, the Pony Club area nine has given me £100 for each of them for a new hat; the Pony Club has been amazing.
“I’ve helped people, and now people are helping me; I’m sure they would have done it for anyone but it shows that kindness breeds kindness, and I can’t get over the kindness people have shown.”
Stay in touch with all the news in the run-up to and throughout the major shows and events during 2026 and beyond with a Horse & Hound subscription. Subscribe today for all you need to know ahead of these major events, plus online reports on the action as it happens from our expert team of reporters and in-depth analysis in our special commemorative magazines. Have a subscription already? Set up your unlimited website access now
Eleanor is an experienced journalist who spent over eight years working for local and national newspapers before joining H&H as news editor in March 2016. Passionate about equine welfare and exposing the truth, Eleanor has reported on all aspects of the industry, from Brexit to anti-bullying campaigns, and from dressage rules to mules. Her sport of choice is showjumping, in which she competes her own horses, and she also enjoys reporting at local jumping shows through to international championships.
