'The Canadian team has been working with the local Bright and Ovens FFMVic crews to open critical forest roads in the Buckland Valley by doing hazardous tree assessment and falling trees in steep difficult terrain with the ever-present significant tree hazard.
By working as a team, we planned how to induct and mentor them into this complex environment.
The team, from French-speaking Quebec, has applied a safety focus, work ethic and a willingness to share and take on knowledge to achieve a huge amount of work on the ground.
Daniel Pichot was the key advanced faller at our end. He is a French Australian, so it was pretty amazing that of all the advanced fallers in Victoria, we could have ended up working with, we had a French-speaking one who did an amazing job.
Our local team acted as mentors, offsiders and buddies and by end of the first week, the Quebec team is able to work as self-managed falling and marking crews, overseen within our fireground structure.'
Page last updated: 07/02/20