Historical information

Bushfire perimeter rather than bushfire area is the main control problem for firefighters on the ground. A conundrum rapidly compounded by spot fires.
A small 5 ha fire can be nearly 1 km around the perimeter. That's a long way to build a control line by hand in rough bush.
Dry firefighting techniques by hand were mostly confined to “knocking down” or “beating out” the flames, as well as "digging out".
Digging or raking a “mineral earth” trail down to bare dirt proved most effective in forest fuels which, unlike grass, tend to retain heat and smoulder.
Early tools were whatever happened to be close at hand. They were simple and primitive and included shovels, slashers, axes, hoes, beaters and rakes. A cut branch to beat the flames was often the only thing available.
Farming and logging tools, developed over centuries of manual labour, and readily available at local hardware stores came into use, but little thought was given to size, weight, and balance.
This leather beater was based on a century-old stockman's design which used green cow hide leather lashed to a broom handle. It's recommend that users lift no more than above knee height to conserve energy and let the beater to the work.
For years foresters experimented with combination tools.
In about 1952 fire beaters and other implements were being replaced with Rakuts and later Rakehoes

Significance

Early firefighting tool

Physical description

Bushfire beater - Leather with wooden handle