Fire and Emergency New Zealand has today welcomed back its continent of firefighters from the United States.

The six-person specialist team has been operating across the Pacific Northwest region in a range of capacities including International Liaison Officer, Taskforce Leader, Division Group Supervisor and Helicopter Manager.

The Zulu contingent departed New Zealand on 7 August and spent just over a month in the United States before the majority arrived home on 11 September - the International Liaison Officer will arrive back on 13 September.

National Commander Russell Wood says he is proud of the efforts of Zulu contingent who were faced with large scale wildfires.

"Our six team members faced conditions very different to those that they would encounter at home in Aotearoa but have very impressively risen to the challenge.

"The size of these wildfires alone is confronting, and our crew adapted well to provide valuable management support to the United States wildfire services.

"Zulu contingent was Fire and Emergency’s first deployment to the United States since 2018 and they represented the organisation extremely well. Their professionalism and skillset has been praised by their American colleagues."

Zulu’s return to New Zealand marks the conclusion of our North American deployment at this stage. Bravo deployment returned home from Canada last week.

After enduring a challenging fire season, the wildfire threat in Canada continues to drop. The National Preparedness Level has been reduced to 3 out of 5 (it was at 5 when the deployments were requested). In the United States, the National Preparedness Level still sits at 5, but no further requests for assistance have been received or are expected to be received in the future.

"I am extremely proud of the efforts of all personnel who have been deployed throughout this period," Russell Wood says.

"Their willingness to lend their skills to our international colleagues in their time of need is always greatly appreciated."

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