Reports from Down Under have broken the news that an early-morning stable fire Tuesday, August 21 at Leeton Racecourse, located in the Riverina area of New South Wales, has resulted in scores of destroyed stables and at least five standardbred racehorses killed.

An article by news.com.au explains that police are investigating the cause of the blaze and have termed it 'suspicious.' The stables, which have been described as 'aged,' were made of old red gum hardwood.

In addition to the standardbreds which perished, others also suffer burns, but are expected to be able to continue their racing careers after an undetermined amount of time for them to fully recover from their injuries.

Local veterinarian Brian Munro was quoted as saying that the temperament of the racehorses probably allowed the equine casualty rate from the disaster to be minimized. "Standardbreds are a remarkably stoic - if it were thoroughbreds it might be a different story," he was quoted as saying.

Even though Dr. Munro cited the level-headed disposition of the standardbreds as a mitigating factor in the tragedy, local fire captain Graham Parks said the scene was highly volatile. He explained that the horses were very "stressed and stirred up" and that "they were knocking firemen over. It was just chaos."

(With files from news.com.au)