Fighting fires in remote, rugged and isolated areas across Western NSW is now a possibility for the NSW Rural Fire Service with the initiation of the first Remote Area Firefighting Team (RAFT) in the Western Region.
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The Mid Lachlan Valley team of Jeff Boyd, Chris Allegri, Simon Forsyth and Captain Tim Perry from Forbes Central Fire Brigade and Manna Mount’s Captain Mick Cantwell will collaborate with the South West Slopes Zone (Young) to form the Region West RAFT.
Mid Lachlan Valley District Officer Daniel Gordon said this team, one of four new across NSW, was a first for the region, as Mudgee and Bathurst were previously the most Western RAFTs in New South Wales.
“The Mid Lachlan Valley has never had this capability before. This addition will join up with a team at Young and together they will cover Western NSW - from Orange to Dubbo, Cobar to Broken Hill,” Mr Gordon said.
He said the formation of a RAFT team within the Mid Lachlan Valley Team area provides the RFS with a fantastic enhancement to their capacity to fight fires across the area.
“Previously we have had fires in remote bushland that we have been unable to access on the ground, where we have then had to rely heavily on aircraft,” Mr Gordon said.
RAFTS are skilled in dry fire firefighting techniques such as creating firebreaks by cutting mineral earth trails or undertaking backburning work. With their unique training and equipment, they can now effectively fire-fight in areas that have traditionally been inaccessible with ground crews and tankers.
“This means we can effectively attack fires in remote bushland, forests or National Parks on the ground while fires are small, before they grow out of control and could potentially effect even larger areas surrounding them such as farmland or towns,” Mr Gordon said.
“RAFT gives us more options in how we work to control and contain fires, before they get to a size they can severely impact on our local communities and the environment.”
The Mid Lachlan Valley RAFT team will complete their winch training in Sydney later this year. Once completed this training, they can be called on as a Rapid Aerial Response Team.
