Another Fire and Rescue NSW crew flew out of Dubbo this week to fight deadly and destructive bush fires elsewhere in the state.
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The state government agency, which provides fire, rescue and hazmat services in cities and towns, is also a key player in emergencies and disasters.
Dubbo-based zone commander regional west 1, Superintendent Gary Barber, reports most of the 16-member crews are made up of retained firefighters from stations including Dubbo, Delroy, Trangie, Gilgandra and Coonamble.
Senior staff of Fire and Rescue also have been sent from Dubbo to help manage the bush fires.
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"We've been sending off crews to the Glen Innes and Tenterfield area and our officers have been going to the Wauchope Fire Control Centre mainly," Superintendent Barber said.
"It's pretty much every week. We would have sent close to 60 with another crew going off today (Thursday).
"That will be ongoing for the next couple of weeks at least."
Superintendent Barber said permanent staff remained in Dubbo to "protect" the city and back up operations in neighbouring communities such as Gilgandra, Wellington and Narromine.
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He said they attended a house fire in Narromine on Wednesday where the gift of a bulk water tanker from NSW Police came in handy.
Superintendent Barber said it carried 12,500 litres (L) of water as compared with the 1800L in a "normal truck".
It was brought to Dubbo as part of Fire and Rescue's preparations for "dangerous fire weather" on Tuesday.
The tanker, in action a week after being commissioned, supported a Fire and Rescue strike team in Dubbo consisting of 18 firefighters and vehicles from Dubbo, Delroy, Gilgandra and Wellington stations.
Superintendent Barber said they did not have to attend a fire.
"The idea of forming a strike team in advance is to really get on top of major grass or bush fires before they get out of hand," he said.
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Superintendent Barber said on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday permanent staff in Dubbo did laps of residential areas close to bushland with a compressed air foam tanker.
It was also used at the Narromine house fire and in the zone commander's view is the "way of the future" because of its water and fire-fighting efficiencies.
Meanwhile, the bulk water tanker has been returned to Cobar.
"We try to put it somewhere central so that if we get something like the IGA fire in Walgett, it's not part of the initial response but will be there in an hour or an hour and a half to make sure we've got constant water to put out a major fire," Superintendent Barber said.
