A group of firefighters from Canada have generously volunteered to cancel their Christmas plans and sacrifice family time during the festive season to help Australian firefighters battle raging bushfires.
Australia’s distressing call for help has reached all parts of the world and the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre has responded by sending dozens of hardworking firefighters across the ocean to assist the country in its battle against bushfires.
The chosen group of volunteers are set to spend a total of 38 days serving across the pond far away from their families.
“We are pleased to help the people of Australia as they face these devastating fires, especially since Manitoba has been on the receiving end of help from friends and neighbors when wildfires and other natural disasters hit our province,” Manitoba Premier Brian Pallister announced.
“There’s nothing more Manitoban than offering a helping hand when someone else is in need.”
According to the reports, the volunteers sent abroad were assigned various roles depending on their skillset and experiences obtained throughout years of service. Among battling fires, they will also assist Australians in planning and team management.
The announcement followed shortly after three young Australian boys were caught lighting fires on purpose amid the country’s worst-ever battle with raging bushfires.
Two of the 12-year-old culprits were apprehended after starting a bushfire at Koonawarra reserve in New South Wales whereas the third one lit a fire behind a sports center in Wollongong, Warilla.
All three children will be held responsible for deliberately starting bushfires and will answer for their crimes according to the Young Offenders Act.
Fortunately, no one was injured due to the callous actions of the boys and the firefighters were able to put out the fires moments after they were started.
“It’s quite distressing to see young people in particular continuing to ignore the message about how dangerous fires can be,” Inspector Brian Pedersen of the Lake Illawarra Police District expressed as he claimed the number of deliberately started fires poses a huge concern.
“We are urging the whole community to be vigilant and report any suspicious behavior.”
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