'Outstanding' firies leave impression on Kimmince

Delissa Kimmince’s brush with the Queensland Fire and Rescue Service seven years ago was a brief one, but it left an indelible mark on the Brisbane Heat and Australia allrounder.

Kimmince spent a week on work experience with the service in 2012, as part of the Australian Cricket Association’s Beyond the Boundary program.

With Queensland and New South Wales currently hit by widespread, devastating bushfires, Kimmince has nothing but praise for the work of those battling the flames.

It’s also a career path Kimmince herself hopes to pursue once her full-time cricketing days are over.

"That week was an eye-opening experience, to see what they do," Kimmince told cricket.com.au.

"A lot of the time it isn’t just the fires, it’s the car crashes and everything else.

"Then you see at the moment, how much they’re going through with the bushfires and how much of a toll it actually takes on the body.

"They’re on for 14, 15 or 16 hours with only a few hours rest and then they’re back out there in the heat trying to battle these fires.

"They’re outstanding people and they have to be so mentally and physically strong to be able to push through."

While Kimmince and her Heat teammates have barely been home since the start of WBBL|05, she said their thoughts had been with all those affected both in Queensland, and in NSW.

"It is heartbreaking see what’s happening at the moment," she said.

"We want to wish everyone the best and the firies all the best in what they do.

"Keep up the good work, because there’s a lot of people out there who are very grateful for what they do."

Kimmince’s international career reignited two years ago when she was recalled for the 2017 Ashes on home soil.

Prior to that, she was combining her Queensland and Heat commitments with the cleaning business she started to supplement her cricket income.

But the 30-year-old, who originally hails from Warwick in southeast Queensland, says she has a clear career path in mind for when she does pack away her kit bag for good.

"I’ve always wanted to play for Australia in cricket and outside of that, I wanted to be a firefighter," Kimmince said.

"It’s the only thing I’ve ever wanted to do post cricket, to be honest.

"I’m in a period of deciding (at the moment) when I should apply.

"That’s always been my goal outside of cricket… hopefully one day that dream comes true."