![CLIMBING FOR CHARITY: Eglinton Rural Fire Service [RFS] members Cameron Evans, Dwayne Esparon and Matt Nelson. Photo: SAM BOLT](/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/xry9xtRQu9u36zRV2j5976/27228e68-f70e-4175-ab74-8889d5f44dd2.JPG/r0_430_4608_3021_w576_h298_fmax.webp "CLIMBING FOR CHARITY: Eglinton Rural Fire Service [RFS] members Cameron Evans, Dwayne Esparon and Matt Nelson. Photo: SAM BOLT")
Four members of the Eglinton Rural Fire Service [RFS] are gearing up to climb Sydney's tallest structure in full firefighting gear to raise awareness for an incurable disease.
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Eglinton RFS members Cameron Evans, Dwayne Esparon, Matt Nelson and Nathan Inwood will climb Sydney Tower on Saturday, November 9 to raise funds for Macquarie University's motor neurone disease [MND] research facility.
The members will attempt the 98-floor, 1504-step climb wearing over 20 kilograms of firefighting gear, and have implemented a rigorous training regime to prepare for the event.
"We frequent parkrun each Saturday in 20 kilogram weight vests, and have complemented this with regular laps around Mount Panorama," Mr Evans said.
"The stair machine at Bathurst's Dedicated to Fitness [d2f] gym has been a big help as well," Mr Esparon added.
In Australia, around 1200 people are currently battling MND, with around 400 new diagnoses each year.
To date, the members have collectively raised $3615 towards MND research, and have each set an goal of $1504 to match the number of stairs in Sydney Tower.
Mr Nelson said the charity event doubles as a practical exercise for firefighters, who sometimes have to navigate steep inclines to battle fires.
"The training is helping us prepare for the upcoming fire season, which is looking rather dire due to dry conditions," he said.
"It can be quite strenuous carrying firefighting equipment up hills in full gear."
The members have set a goal to complete the climb in under 20 minutes.
To support the Eglinton RFS' fundraising campaign, visit https://fundraise.firiesclimbformnd.org.au/page/EglintonRFS.
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Sam Bolt
"I'm not in the business of telling people what to do. I'm much more in the business of describing things, situations and stuff like that and leaving them out there, and you can make up your minds about them." -Nick Cave
"I'm not in the business of telling people what to do. I'm much more in the business of describing things, situations and stuff like that and leaving them out there, and you can make up your minds about them." -Nick Cave
