New Australian medal to honour those who battled horror bushfire season

A new medal will be awarded to Australian firefighters, police, paramedics and others to recognise their service during the latest bushfire season.

Source: Australian Department of Defence

A new medal will be awarded to Australian firefighters, police, paramedics and others to recognise their service during the latest bushfire season.

The National Emergency Medal will be awarded to eligible emergency responders who gave sustained or "significant" service during the 2019-2020 bushfires.

RFS Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons shows NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian a map of fire affected areas as part of the recovery operation on Thursday. Source: AAP

"We also honour those Australians who have battled this devastating fire season, many of whom will be on fire grounds today protecting our communities from danger," Prime Minister Scott Morrison said on Sunday while announcing the new medal.

However, the detailed criteria for who can be awarded the medal has not been determined and will be decided after a "consultation" once the bushfire crisis has passed.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison. Source: AAP

The Governor-General David Hurley declared the bushfires to be a "nationally significant" emergency for the purposes of the medal after a recommendation from the Morrison government.

with AAP...