Sonia Sharrock 's stud farm near Maitland , in the Hunter Region of New South Wales , was badly flooded . The water rose rapidly and the horses became tangled in barbed wire when the could n't see the fences . Her brother-in-law Ms Sharrock 's decided to paddle out on his surfboard to rescue them . He plunged down into the freezing flood water to cut them free from the barbed wire . It took six hours in total to bring the horses up to the safety of Steve Spowart hilltop garden . Maitland was one of the areas hardest hit in the state by what 's being called the storm of the decade .
Sonia Sharrock 's stud farm near Maitland , in the Hunter Region of New South Wales , was badly flooded . The water rose rapidly and the horses became tangled in barbed wire when the could n't see the fences . Her brother-in-law Steve Spowart decided to paddle out on his surfboard to rescue them . He plunged down into the freezing flood water to cut them free from the barbed wire . It took six hours in total to bring the horses up to the safety of Ms Sharrock 's hilltop garden . Maitland was one of the areas hardest hit in the state by what 's being called the storm of the decade .