And they're off! Lytham firefighters walk 11 miles in honour of 11 who died fighting Australia wildfires

A fund-raising target of 11k has been set for the 11-mile walk in full firefighting kit

The team from Lytham departed this morning (January 26) and will walk one mile for each of the 11 firefighters who lost their lives battling some of the worst bush fires Australia has ever seen.

Watch manager David Curran said: “There was a lot of feeling within our station that we wanted to acknowledge the sacrifice these firefighters have given, not only to their job, but also their community.

“Everyone will have seen the horrific images on the news of the bush fires and we can only imagine the conditions the Australian firefighters are working in.”

A team of 11 firefighters set off to raise money for their Australian colleagues fighting devastating wildfires.

At least 29 people are believed to have died in the bush fires, with 20 of these being in New South Wales alone.

A staggering 1bn animals are believed to have been killed, including 50,000 koalas on the country’s famous Kangaroo Island.

The crew hopes to raise £11,000 from their walk, with all proceeds going to the New South Wales Rural Fire Service.

They set off from Lytham fire station in full kit at around 10am, heading north to Bispham with plans to stop at Blackpool’s piers and at Blackpool Tower on the way.