Wandering Volunteer Bushfire Brigade’s ability to fight fires bolstered by two new tankers

The Wandering Volunteer Bushfire Brigade’s ability to fight fires has been bolstered by the addition of two former mining fire trucks donated by the Boddington Bauxite Mine owner. South32 Worsley Alumina — which owns the local mine — donated the trucks earlier this month after completing a fleet upgrade that meant the vehicles were “surplus to requirements”. The four bushfire brigades in Wandering previously shared two firefighting trucks to tackle blazes across the district. Wandering Town Brigade captain Shaun Brand said the new trucks would be a “massive asset”. “The addition of two firefighting tankers to our fleet will significantly boost our prevention and response capabilities, enabling our volunteer crews to cover more ground carrying water, firefighting equipment and supplies,” he said. “Every year that we don’t have a fire could be another year closer to having one, so being proactive and ready to go with these new trucks is going to be a massive asset. “We have a good, young brigade and everyone is very eager, so we are trying to kit ourselves out with good equipment.” South32 Worsley Alumina vice-president operations Erwin Schaufler said the local emergency teams did an amazing job. “We greatly appreciate their efforts and wish them well,” he said. “We are proud to provide these two modern firefighting tankers to Wandering VBFB, further boosting its capability to prevent fires and protect land and property across the Shire.”