FIREFIGHTERS have praised the quick thinking efforts of a local man after a blaze took hold of a storage container near Tamworth.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Family heirlooms, furniture and other household goods were being stored in the shipping container on a property on Hanging Rock Rd at Hanging Rock near Nundle.
Shortly after 1pm on Tuesday, the Rural Fire Service (RFS) was alerted after a blaze erupted.
Tamworth Zone RFS Inspector Steve Prior told The Leader the man did everything he could to try and extinguish the blaze.
“We had appliances from Hanging Rock and Nundle attend, so we had three units and there were able to extinguish the fire safely but unfortunately the shipping container was unable to be saved,” he said.
The man put up a really valiant effort to try and extinguish the fire and put water into it before the fire started but it had taken hold.
- RFS Inspector Steve Prior
“The man put up a really valiant effort to try and extinguish the fire and put water into it before the fire started but it had taken hold.”
Inspector Prior said valuable family heirlooms and other personal family items had been lost in the devastating blaze.
It’s believed to have started from an accidental ignition from machinery nearby but the cause of the fire is still under investigation.
He is shattered, absolutely shattered.
- RFS Inspector Steve Prior
“He is shattered, absolutely shattered,” Inspector Prior said.
“It’s a complete loss, all of the family heirlooms, and obviously it’s devastating for them.
“But the owner tried very hard and did everything possible to contain the blaze, and he did a very brave job.”