A FORMER Warrington man who instigated a new form of fire-fighting in his adopted home of Australia has died.
David Webster, aged 55, died last month following more than 30 years' service as a volunteer and career officer for the Western Australia Fire and Emergency Service Authority (FESA).
Mr Webster was born in Warrington and lived in the town until he was six years old before moving Down Under.
He is best remembered for pioneering the use of helicopters in treating large-scale bush fires, a practice now widely used.
"David moved fire-fighting from the stone age to the modern era," said FESA colleague John Allen.
Mr Webster started to realise that large-scale blazes would be best fought with the use of helicopters that could drop water over big areas and spaces of land to tackle flames.
His idea was finally realised in 1997, some 20 years after he first suggested it, when the fire service in Perth, Western Australia, adopted it as an official policy.
He is survived by wife Julie and sons Damian and Ryan.
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