Bushfire response gets WICEN help

As numerous bushfires burn in the Blue Mountains in New South Wales (NSW) Australia the latest to join the fight has been WICEN members activated to help with their communications knowledge. WICEN NSW President Compton Allen VK2HRX said the official activation has begun, drawing on the resources of the emergency communications group.

The activation is "to support the declared State of Emergency with manpower in the Lithgow area to the West of Sydney in the Blue Mountains," said Compton. Already 200 homes have been lost. A State of Emergency has been declared for the area. The NSW Rural Fire Services fear that up to four separate blazes could potentially come together to form a huge fire front in the next day or so. Evacuations of tens of thousands of people are possible as hotter weather conditions combine with fire fronts already burning.

The activation by the Volunteer Rescue Association calls for WICEN NSW members to contact operations@nsw.wicen.org.au to advise of their availability from Tuesday October 22 for the Lithgow area.

(Jim Linton VK3PC, Chairman IARU Region 3 Disaster Communications Committee).

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