Illawarra Support Rural Fire Brigade

Page copied from our friends at Farmborough Heights Rural Fire Brigade

🔥 Hazard Reduction Burn in Progress 🔥

Our crews from the NSW Rural Fire Service, alongside partner agencies, are currently carrying out a hazard reduction burn in the Cordeaux Dam area.

🌫️ What to expect:
You may notice smoke drifting across the community and a smoky smell over the next day or so — this is normal and part of the planned burn.

📲 Stay informed:
Keep up to date via the Hazards Near Me NSW app for the latest information.

🚨 See something concerning?
If you see a fire and no emergency services are in attendance, please call 000 immediately.

👍 Thanks for your understanding as we work to reduce fire risk and keep our community safe!

Today 3/4/2026 a crew from Support Brigade provided Jamberoo Brigade with fresh cylinders for a job they were undertaking. The crew then picked up and delivered some welfare before helping them pack up the job.
The crew then stopped to check out the view from Saddleback Mountain Lookout.
Great work from all involved today.

Well it’s been a bit quiet of late but this afternoon a crew assisted Fire and Rescue NSW Station 207 Albion Park & Fire and Rescue NSW Station 488 Shellharbour with water supply to a local incident. Always great to work alongside other agencies.

A Total Fire Ban is in place today, Sunday, 25 January for the Eastern Riverina and Monaro Alpine areas. Hot, dry and windy conditions are forecast across parts of the state, increasing the fire danger.

Be ready to act. Know your fire risk and what you will do if fire threatens. Report all unattended fires to Triple Zero (000).

For more information on Total Fire Ban rules, visit the website: www.rfs.nsw.gov.au/fdr

One of the tasks that members of the support brigade do includes transporting other brigade members to/from the airport for deployments. Here is Jamberoo Rural Fire Service member Sandra being dropped off at Sydney airport as she embarks on a deployment to Albury. Stay safe Sandra and a brigade member will be there on your return to transport you home.
Gerringong Rural Fire Brigade

Now is a great time to have a discussion with your family about what you would do if a Bushfire were to threaten your home and property?

🔥 Is your property Bushfire ready?
🔥Is your Survival Kit (Grab n Go bag) ready and in an easy to grab place?
🔥Where will you go?
🔥 What would you do with any livestock?
🔥Are you all on the same page about what your fire plan is, and is your fire plan up to date?

These are all questions you should be asking each other.

The NSW Rural Fire Service have made creating your fire plan quick and easy with this 5 minute step by step process at our website https://www.myfireplan.com.au

Below is a checklist visual we created, which will help you with a few items you should consider putting in your Grab N Go bag/Survival kit, we've also left space for you to add your own ideas of what to take.

So, what will you be adding?

🔥 Ready to make a real difference? 🔥

Join our team of volunteer firefighters and help protect the community we all call home. No experience needed—just a willingness to learn, a commitment to serve, and the heart to step up when it counts.

If you’ve ever wondered how you can give back in a meaningful way, this is your chance.

It doesn’t need to be on the fire front, there are many ways you can get involved, so gear up, get involved, and be the reason someone’s worst day turns into a better one. 🚒💛

** Send us a message if you’d like to know more

https://www.facebook.com/share/17iLBn5rQC/?mibextid=wwXIfr

RFS 2025 Teaser - 45 Second (Energised) This is "RFS 2025 Teaser - 45 Second (Energised)" by NSW Rural Fire Service on Vimeo, the home for high quality videos and the people who love them.

It might be Christmas time, but this is one present no firefighter (RFS or Fire & Rescue) wants to find wrapped up.
A covered hydrant slows crews down when every second counts, and that delay can make all the difference in an emergency.

If you spot a hydrant that needs maintenance or clearer markings, please report it to your local fire station, council or water authority, also if you’re gardening, please don’t cover them with w**d mats.

For those who were unsure of our operating hours during the Christmas / New Year period, please see below

Fun Firefighter Fact: Why Don’t our Fire Trucks Have Number Plates?

Ever wondered why our trucks don’t have number plates? Did we park in a dodgy part of the region and someone pinched them? Nope!
Here’s the real reason: RFS appliances are classified as Rural emergency firefighting vehicles under NSW law. Instead of being registered like normal cars, they go through strict annual inspections to make sure they’re safe and ready for action. We identify them using fleet numbers and reflective markings, not plates—because these trucks spend more time fighting fires than cruising the highway.

And while we’re talking fire facts if you hear that a Total Fire Ban (TOBAN) is in place this is what it means;

No fires out in the open.
No hot works (welding, grinding, cutting) in the open.
If it’s your birthday and you’re older than 5, maybe consider fewer candles this year!

And if you see a fire without a fire truck nearby, call 000 immediately.

Stay safe, stay alert, and help us keep the Illawarra region fire safe.

Thanks to the team at NSW RFS - Moonee Brigade for the below info.

Good day all. With the fires around the state making headlines and a lot of fire terminology in the news, there is quite a bit of confusion surrounding the difference between HRs and back burns. Sometimes these terms do get mixed up by not only the general public but members of the media, and it is important to be informed about the difference.

🔥𝐇𝐚𝐳𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐑𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 (𝐇𝐑)🔥 :
HR's are one method used to prepare for oncoming bushfire seasons. Hazard Reduction burns are both extensively planned and resourced long before being undertaken. Their purpose is to help reduce the fuel available to a fire IF one were to start. Test burns are conducted before the HR commences, and the burn itself will be conducted on a day where the weather is favourable. It doesn't remove the threat of fire completely, and certainly doesn't reduce the need for you to have your property and family prepared.
There are several different types of Hazard Reduction (HR), including controlled burning, mechanical clearing (such as clearing undergrowth and ground fuels with machinery) or even removing fuel by hand.

🔥𝐁𝐚𝐜𝐤𝐛𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠🔥:
Backburning is a tactic used by firefighters to slow the progression of an active advancing fire by burning out the available fuel between an established control line and the approaching main fire head (fighting fire with fire). The control line used for back-burning may be a pre-existing firebreak such as a road, track, stream, creek, river or a specially constructed firebreak made with hand tools or machinery.

Below is a graphic showing how a back burn is undertaken.