Berrigan

*I am Berrigan of the M. Flamarine Railway Army. I also belong to the Forest Fires Brigade, and my job is exactly as it says on the tin. Of course, I'll also rush to the scene when a fire breaks out in a residential area. I'm confident in my strength, so leave the hard yakka to me!*

## Trivia

* Berrigan's birthday is the opening date of Berrigan station, on the same day that the Tocumwal railway line, New South Wales reached Berrigan in 1896.
* Berrigan's firefighting background is likely based on the Berrigan Bush Fire Brigade, which was formed in 1889 to protect the wildlife and populace from the frequent bushfires. The Berrigan Bush Fire Brigade was the predecessor to the current New South Wales Rural Fire Service, which was instrumental in extinguishing the 2019 Australian bushfires, known as Black Summer.
* Berrigan's dislike of fires is a direct reference to the bush fires of Australia. The 2019–20 Australian bushfire season (Black Summer), was a period of bushfires in many parts of Australia, which, due to its unusual intensity, size, duration, and uncontrollable dimension, is considered a megafire. The mega fire was caused due to a wide spread of many uncontrollable fires in different locations that led to a megafire.
* The buildings in the background of [Splash Arrow] is the Berrigan Federal Hotel & Motel. Although the town of Berrigan is not a major tourist destination, it has a good reputation for its hotels and local cuisine.

## Counterpart

Berrigan station was a train station extension of the Tocumwal railway line. The train station was opened on 14 October, 1896, consisting of only a station shack and waiting area. The station platform was added on 15 December, 1908 as an additional ease and convenience to passengers boarding the train.

In 1936, the up-side station resided on a 50m platform. At the north end was a goods siding with shed and jib crane. Further up the line was a water tank and column. On the opposite side was a grain siding, 100m grain shed and stock yards. Further beyond that was a siding serving some silos and another grain shed. There was also a down-side triangle for turning locomotives; this was removed at a later stage before the line closed. NSW Rail

The Tocumwal railway line is a closed railway line in New South Wales, Australia. The line branched from the still open Junee – Hay line at Narrandera station and then headed south west to Tocumwal station where there was a break-of-gauge with the Victorian Railways Goulburn Valley line from Shepparton.
The line was opened to Jerilderie station in 1884, extended to Berrigan in 1896, Finley in 1898 and Tocumwal in 1914. The Victorian line had reached Tocumwal in July 1908. Two of the stations on the Tocumwal railway line were Widgiewa and Morundah.

The last goods train left Tocumwal for Narrandera in 1985, and traffic ceased over the line south of Jerilderie in September 1986 and the entire line was closed in December 1988. The Victorian line to Tocumwal remains open for freight traffic. Tocumwal was the site in 1915 of early tests with third-rail devices to enable standard gauge and broad gauge trains to share the same tracks. In later years passenger services on the line were operated by railcars, connecting with an overnight train at Narrandera. From 1973 the service operated three days per week, until their withdrawal on Saturday 26 November 1983. The final passenger service was a special excursion train operated with a Silver City Comet railcar set on 20 September 1986.

A 2018 report addresses the feasibility of re-opening the line, given that the still-operating line south from Tocumwal could be converted to standard gauge. The report finds that re-opening would not be financially justified although it might be justified on economic or environmental grounds. Wikipedia

The New South Wales Rural Fire Service (NSW RFS) is a volunteer-based firefighting agency and statutory body of the Government of New South Wales. The NSW RFS is responsible for fire protection to approximately 95% of the land area of New South Wales and the Jervis Bay Territory, while urban areas are the responsibility of Fire and Rescue NSW. The NSW RFS is the primary agency for responding to bushfires in the state. In addition, they respond to structural fires, vehicle fires, motor vehicle accidents and wide range of other emergencies, as well as providing preventative advice to local communities.

The NSW RFS is the world's largest volunteer fire service, with 71,234 volunteer members, although this figure includes many inactive volunteer firefighters and all support volunteers. They are organised into 1,994 brigades (local units). As of 30 June 2019, the service employed 936 paid staff who fulfil senior operational management and administrative roles. The agency attends to approximately 30,000 incidents per annum. The NSW RFS was at the forefront of Australia's worst bushfire outbreak known as Black Summer (2019–20). Wikipedia

## Map

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