Turning up the heat for firefighting training
Emergency Responders from the New Zealand Army’s 3rd Field Squadron and Emergency Response Squadron battled fires and attended patient rescue scenarios at a recent exercise in a state-of-the-art facility in Rotorua.
27 June, 2025
The training, at the National Training Centre, was to ensure crews from both Linton and Burnham Military Camps and the New Zealand Defence Force’s Waiouru Station were certified in their respective skills. Assessors from Fire and Emergency New Zealand marked the competencies of the crews, who all successfully completed the tasks.
“Every level was assessed during the training,” Sapper Matthieu Rousseau said.
“There are the two ‘back-seaters’, who are the team that goes into the building to do the work, then the pump operator, who's also the driver, and the Officer in Charge (OIC) who leads the truck.”
The back-seater team was evaluated on whether they were safely following the correct drills, communicating clearly and following instructions. The pump operator had to show they were responding at the correct speed, following the correct and safe driving rules, including parking in the correct manner away from smoke, and getting water to the truck.
The OIC was rated on whether they came up with a good plan, using the correct tactics and able to communicate information to other emergency responders if needed.
“Everyone performed really well, above expectations. One of the things about this trade is you never really know what you're going to turn up to. We get the information from communications, but it’s difficult to know the exact scenario we will be facing.”
NZ Army Emergency Responders alongside crews from Waiouru Station training at the FENZ National Training Centre
SPR Rousseau, a pump operator, is about to start his junior command course, and during the exercise he was also given the opportunity to find out the challenges of the OIC role.
“It had its difficulties, but with the guidance from some of the guys who were there, the role just fell into place.
“It was a satisfying exercise and it’s always great to be able to use the National Training Centre, which is world-class – there’s nothing better in the country. So whenever we get to go, I'm always stoked,” SPR Rousseau said.