Taupo District’s fire manager takes on Aussie flames

Taupo District's fire manager takes on Aussie flames

28 January 2015

Taupo District's rural fire manager Roger Nelson is off to Tasmania as part of a New Zealand team being sent to help tackle bush fires.

Mr Nelson flies to Hobart via Auckland and Melbourne tomorrow along with 41 other firefighters from around the country. Once there, he will lead a team of five fighting bush fires in the north west of Tasmania, where over 60,000 hectares of bush is burning or has already been destroyed by fire.

Mr Nelson said the journey would start with a briefing day in Hobart on local conditions, hazards and what to expect. He will then work seven 12 hour shifts straight before having two days off and then repeating it over three weeks. Mr Nelson said his team would be helicoptered in each day and winched down to chosen locations.

I expect it's going to be a harrowing experience, but I'm absolutely looking forward to the challenge, Mr Nelson said. I am a bit nervous, of course. You know when you're being winched in and out that the country is pretty remote, and it's a fairly hostile environment when fires are raging nearby so you want to be able to make a hasty exit if necessary.

Mr Nelson put his hand up for the bush fires in Victoria earlier this month but was instead chosen for this New Zealand contingent to Tasmania. He will be taking over all his own protective gear and said his wife and children are excited for him.

They're rapt, and really proud. They know the way I've been trained and they know I operate safely. In saying that, I'll be dealing with hugely different conditions - different vegetation, difficult terrain - it's going to be a decent adventure.

He was excited at the prospect of being able to bring new skills back with him to the Taupo District to pass on to his rural firefighters. It'll be a big learning experience, with lots of new ways of doing things, he said. I imagine it's going to be a very physical task - it's all a bit of an unknown for me, but I'm really looking forward to it. It should be an amazing experience.