But, just less than a decade earlier, Mr Fewtrell was front and centre in the Central West.

Dubbo residents may remember Mr Fewtrell from his time spent in town during the late 2000s and early 2010s before he made the move back to Sydney.

"It was a real highlight of my career and a great opportunity as well, to be honest, I don't think my career would progressed as well if wasn't for working out in Dubbo," Mr Fewtrell told the Daily Liberal

"Half of the time I was in Dubbo, I was in charge of the fire station and for the other three and a half years I was the duty commander who looked after stations across the Western Plains area.

"I dealt with a lot of different agencies out there and worked on local emergency management committees and councils, as well as the 18 crews that were in the zone.

"From that, I was able to get experience with working with different government agencies and that whole collaborative approach which has put me in good stead."

Mr Fewtrell spent seven years in Dubbo, arriving in 2007 when the city looked very different before departing in 2014.

Having started his career in Sydney, the new Fire and Rescue NSW Commissioner reflected fondly on his time spent in the Central West where his family grew.

"We had two of our four kids in Dubbo," he said.

"We've still got a lot of connections out there so it is always a lovely opportunity to go back out there whether it is for work or with the family."

As deputy commissioner, Mr Fewtrell took on some of the responsibilities following the departure of Paul Baxter in July 2023.

In late 2023, it was announced the former Dubbo resident had been given the top job, a moment he won't forget.

"It's a real thrill and a real honour for me as well," he said.

"I've been in the organisation for 26 years and it has been a big part of my working life. I'm a very passionate firefighter and I'm aware of the history of the organisation.

"To be given the opportunity to be one of its commissioners is an amazing thrill."

Approximately 7,000 full-time and on-call firefighters operate in NSW and Mr Fewtrell knows exactly what they deal with on a day-to-day basis.

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Having overseen the emergency responses to the recent Surry Hills warehouse fire and playing a role in the Greta bus crash, the new commissioner has seen his fair share of major incidents, something he has to learn to live with.

"It's something I have dealt with all the way through because, for a large part of my career, I specialised in the rescue part of our work," he said.

"Right from the early stages (of my career) I was going to some pretty heavy stuff. The way I've approached this is by wanting to be part of the team who gave those people the best possible chance at that critical time and knowing that we didn't have any role in the events occurring and unfolding.

"But everything we did from the time were notified was all designed to make it better for them and ease their suffering.

"Also, knowing that we had prepared ourselves with training, making sure our skills were as good as they could be and then knowing our equipment so we could use it as effectively as possible.

"Even if the outcome may not have been as happy as it could have been otherwise if people had passed away, knowing that we'd been able to give it the absolute best possible attempt to get a chance to save them."

Often dealing with people under duress or in high-pressure situations, Mr Fewtrell said firefighters have access to a number of different resources should they wish to talk to someone.

"The other thing is people able to talk about it with your peers and knowing that there is support there within the organisation that is designed to help you with those sort of things," he said.

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