A TRIO of Country Fire Service (CFS) volunteers from the Kingsley Group will be deployed to the Sunshine Coast today, joining hundreds of other firefighters from around the nation helping fight the raging fires threatening Queensland.
More than 100 fires are currently active in the New South Wales and Queensland leading to the evacuation of many residents in the Sunshine Coast.
As a result, Queensland authorities have called on the assistance of South Australia and Kingsley CFS volunteers Wade Chant, Jason Watts and Stefan Bowden are three of 55 South Australian firefighters to be chosen for five day deployment.
Speaking to The Border Watch yesterday, Mr Watts said the crew was expecting to find out this morning where they would be based and what their responsibilities would be when they arrived later this afternoon.
“We do not really know what to expect at this stage other than the fact it will not be great conditions over there,” he said.
“We’ll find out a lot more tomorrow (today) during our briefing, but basically all we know now is what you see on the news.”
Mr Chant said he expected the fires to have a high level of intensity based on “word of mouth” coming out of Queensland.
“One lady described it like a flame thrower because with the winds they had it was just pushed so hard and fast,” he said.
“I know they have cleared out a few towns and there are still numerous fires burning up there.”
The crew members from Kingsley are well-prepared for interstate deployment, particularly Mr Chant and Mr Watts who were involved in a similar deployment to the Sunshine State in December.
Mr Bowden will embark on his first interstate deployment and was proud to receive the opportunity.
“For our peers to have the trust in us to go over there and come back safe is a great feeling,” he said.
CFS Region 5 regional commander Jason Drewitt said the community should be proud of the three volunteers.
“It is a great experience for them to go to an active fire ground and learn skills in a different landscape,” Mr Drewitt said.
“It makes me quite overwhelmed when these volunteers put their lives on hold to help others in need.”
While the fire season has not begun in South Australia, Mr Chant said they will lean on their training to help get them through the five days.
“It does not matter whether it is the start of the fire season or the end of the fire season, you never know what to expect when the pager goes off because every fire is different,” Mr Chant said.
“So it’s not necessarily daunting, because we train all the time to act in different situations.”
However, he hoped the fires in the north-eastern states were not a sign of things to come back home.
“That aspect is certainly a bit daunting given that we have had such a dry winter,” he said.
“The fact we are only in September and it’s dry already, I predict a longer fire season than we previously had.”
