Havelock North Volunteer Fire Brigade hosts North Island competition

Havelock North Volunteer Fire Brigade's Greg Lay competing at the United Fire Brigades' Association North Island 2018 Waterways Challenge in Havelock North on Saturday. Photo/Warren Buckland

Havelock North was the host of a sizzling firefighting challenge at the weekend.

Firefighters from 13 volunteer fire brigades as well as a team from Linton took part in the United Fire Brigades' Association (UFBA) North Island 2018 Waterways Challenge at the Havelock North fire station on Saturday.

Participants in teams of two or four competed in nine events testing their hose-running and pump-operating skills.

Havelock North Volunteer Fire Brigade chief fire officer Rod Triplow said this was the first time the Hawke's Bay brigade had hosted the North Island championships which used to be held in Turangi.

Turangi no longer had a suitable location which enabled Havelock North to put their hand up to host, he said.

"It was a great day...we were lucky with the little bit of cloud cover.

"The teams that were there seemed to enjoy themselves."

The Havelock North two-person team came second and the four-person team came third, which was a great result, he said.

UFBA technical panel convenor Ces Pacey said the day was a complete success and enabled crews to extend their skills-based training in a competitive environment as well as building comraderie between the brigades.

"I'd like to thank Havelock North for hosting us."

The Waterway Challenge has been around since 1885 and the season is made up of four regional or two Island events annually and an additional national event every two years.

The teams were from Ruawai, Dargaville, Whitianga, Rawene, Ruakaka, Kamo, Havelock North, Wellsford, Feilding, Matamata, Silverdale, Carterton, Mossburn and Linton.

Havelock North has previously hosted the regional competition but not North Island.