One of the busiest NSW SES rescue units in the state will compete against other emergency services in the 2019 Australasian Rescue Challenge this week.
The NSW SES Hawkesbury Unit will go up against teams from Australia, New Zealand and Hong Kong in a series of trials designed to test their skills and learn new ones.
Twenty-one teams with 120 rescue and medical personnel have descended on Dubbo to compete in three road crash rescue scenarios including entrapped, controlled and time critical as well as a CPR and trauma challenge.
"I was able to attend the Australasian Rescue Challenge in 2016 as a cheer squad. It was totally amazing seeing all the teams and tasks," said NSW SES Hawkesbury Unit Team Leader Megan Thomson.
"Everyone who went learnt a lot from the experience."
The NSW SES Hawkesbury Unit is a primary rescue Unit providing general land rescue including road crash rescue, domestic and industrial rescue, large animal rescue, flood rescue and vertical rescue in the Hawkesbury Local Government Area, North West of Sydney.
The Hawkesbury Unit has 104 volunteer members with 21 members providing the rescue service; with another 4 members currently in training.
"The best part about the Australasian Rescue Challenge is the lack of "us" and 'them" attitudes of the teams." said NSW SES Hawkesbury Unit Team Member Elizabeth Thornton.
With over 516 rescues since 2015, the NSW SES Hawkesbury Unit is one of the busiest NSW SES rescue units in the state.