Two Kiwi firefighters have described the "heartbreaking" conditions on the ground as they help crews battle severe bushfires across Victoria.
Twenty-two firefighters responded to a call for assistance from Australian officials, after record high temperatures in the region led to a spate of out-of-control fires.
In a changing of the guard, a second group of Kiwis will be heading over, as the first team of 22 were set to return home on Monday.
A team of 22 have spent the last two weeks near the state's border with New South Wales in conditions very different to New Zealand. (Source: 1News)
Volunteer firefighter Phil Muldoon said efforts looked a bit different in the extreme Australian conditions, saying New Zealand's usual use of water was "is a bit of a luxury over here".
Muldoon described digging a handline to contain a five-hectare bushfire caused by lightning on day one of the job.
"Arduous is the correct term, certainly hard work [with] long, long days in very remote locations."
Liason Officer Roger Nelson described their work as "a lot of hard physical work with shovels and rakes".
Nelson acknowledged the Victoria conditions, saying "temperature has been up there, but the wind has been playing ball".
The Kiwi firefighters have been staying in tents at a fire camp in Tallangatta, close to the New South Wales border.
Nelson said the sight of burnt townships and farms was "absolutely heart-breaking".
"The average guy who's got a farm, and he's had a fire go through, it's quite sad when you see the aftermath... and to see what is remaining and how they pick themselves up again and go forward," said Muldoon.
The pair said extreme conditions were easing up at the tail end of their deployment.
"The fire activity has settled down a fair bit, fortunately," Muldoon said.
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