A former Ōhakune volunteer firefighter is one of five New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) staff tackling the Tasmanian bushfires.
Corporal Gordon Munn, who joined the Defence Force in 2014 and is now based at RNZAF Base at Woodbourne, served as a volunteer firefighter in Ōhakune for five years.
He is one of the NZDF firefighters who have joined a Fire and Emergency New Zealand team to assist about 500 personnel from Tasmania Fire Service and other parts of Australia.
Munn said he had read the news about the extreme conditions that fire crews in Tasmania were facing but was confident that the New Zealand team's training would serve them well.
"We've learnt various techniques to fight big fires and we are looking forward to working with the Tasmania Fire Service and the rest of the crew that are already there," Munn said.