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Ex-commissioner urges training smoke jumpers for remote fires

By Drooid · Oct 22, 2026, 12:16 PM UTC · How we work

Summary

Story summary

Peter Dunn, former ACT Emergency Services commissioner, urges training smoke jumpers to parachute into remote Australian fires.
Dunn also recommends purchasing at least 12 aircraft tankers, noting Australia currently operates only one NSW tanker.
Volunteer firefighter numbers fell by 10,336 since 2019-20, while paid staff rose by 433 full-time equivalents.
The ELCA report finds bushfire seasons have lengthened 21 % since 1979, costing $6 billion annually.

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Story summary

Peter Dunn, former ACT Emergency Services commissioner, urges training smoke jumpers to parachute into remote Australian fires.
Dunn also recommends purchasing at least 12 aircraft tankers, noting Australia currently operates only one NSW tanker.
Volunteer firefighter numbers fell by 10,336 since 2019-20, while paid staff rose by 433 full-time equivalents.
The ELCA report finds bushfire seasons have lengthened 21 % since 1979, costing $6 billion annually.