Fire and Rescue teams across the Southern Highlands swapped their fire hoses for tinsel and festive cheer recently.
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Crews from Mittagong, Moss Vale, Bowral and Bundanoon pulled out all the stops on December 16 to embrace the Christmas spirit with decorated trucks and festive outfits.
It was all part of a competition pitting the various crew against each other in a fun, festive and creative way.
They then took to the streets of the Highlands to share the merry mood with the community.
It was the fourth consecutive year that the crews had taken on the initiative which was born in the wake of the 2019 bushfires.
A Fire and Rescue spokesperson said "many of our firies had missed Christmas the year of the 2019 bushfires, and that was followed by a hard year for many people...firies and community alike."
Needless to say they wanted to create a more festive and positive spirit around the holiday season for Christmas 2020 which came in the form of a Christmas competition.
"The competition is a way to get all the crews from our Southern Highlands Fire and Rescue NSW stations together for a bit of festive rivalry and camaraderie," the spokesperson said.
"We don't get the chance during the year to get together off the fire ground, so it is really nice for everyone just to get together for a bit of fun. And the local community loves it when we parade through the towns with the winner upfront."
The spokesperson said the competition was festively fierce, with all crews retting into the spirit of the day.
Fire and Rescue NSW Commissioner, Jeremy Fewtrell made a special visit to join in the fun with his two youngest boys.
Judging was completed by a multi-agency panel composed of police, regional emergency management, SES and RFS, and the Ccommissioner's sons.
This year bragging rights went to the Mittagong crew with their Aussie beach Christmas themed truck and costumes.
The commissioner highly commended Moss Vale with their "Keep Looking While Cooking" display.
Following announcements, crews rolled out in a celebratory lap of Bowral, Mittagong and Moss Vale.
Judge included: Brendan Bernie - Detective Chief Inspector, NSW Police; Amanda Lawrence - Regional Emergency Management Officer; James Morris - Operational Services, RFS; and Dylan Whitelaw - Local Commander SES
