January 20, 2020
Kiwi firefighters cross Tasman
More firefighters are on their way across the Tasman to help their Australian colleagues battling bushfires.
Fire Service national Māori advisor says more than 200 rural firefighters have been deployed since before Christmas.
They're working long hours on a five day on, one day off basis.
"Our main function is to create containment lines., Those are the lines deliberately to starve the fire front of fuel as it gets closer to the more populated areas or areas of commercial forestry or places we want to protect, so we sort of preempt the direction of where the fire may come," Mr Thomas says.
He says despite recent rain the New Zealand firefighters are still needed.
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