The bravery and dedication of 80 firefighters from Newcastle and Lake Macquarie will be formally recognized tonight at a special Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) awards ceremony.
Firefighters, from a range of the 20 fire stations across the Metropolitan North 1 region, have been awarded National Emergency Medals during the function at Wallsend.
There were 11,774 fires fought across 5.5 million hectares during the Black Summer crisis. That represents around seven per cent of the state.
Strike Teams
The efforts of firefighters saved countless lives as well as an estimated 14,500 homes
Twenty-six people lost their lives along with scores of wildlife. The fires destroyed 2500 homes, 265 facilities, and 5360 outbuildings.
However, the efforts of firefighters saved countless lives as well as an estimated 14,500 homes, 1500 facilities and 14,000 outbuildings. FRNSW deployed around 950 Strike Teams across the affected areas, featuring firefighters from all parts of NSW, supported by colleagues from interstate.
The first responders, both permanent and On-call (retained), are receiving the National Emergency Medal, in recognition of work carried out over at least five days of the disaster. Metro North 1 provided 10 fire tankers and crews to the various Strike Teams responding to the Black Summer crisis.
