AAP
Well respected and highly experienced, Victorian firefighter Peter Cramer died doing what he'd devoted half his life to.
The 61-year-old, from Tyers in Victoria's Gippsland region, was one of more than 70 Victorian emergency services workers sent to Tasmania on Thursday to help fight the state's devastating fires, which have destroyed more than 130 homes since January 4.
Mr Cramer died on Sunday at Taranna, east of Hobart, while working on foot to identify potential containment lines on the southern boundary of the Forcett fire, about 2-3 kilometres from the active fire edge.
He was to have returned home to his wife Julie and their children on Tuesday, but was found dead at 5pm (AEDT) on a bush track after he failed to make a scheduled call-in.
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Victorian Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) chief fire officer Alan Goodwin said Mr Cramer had been a DSE firefighter for more than 30 years and a CFA volunteer for more than two decades.
He was a DSE training co-ordinator who also volunteered his time to train CFA volunteers.
"Peter was a well-respected and trusted member of the DSE community," Mr Goodwin told reporters in Melbourne on Monday.
"He was a very experienced firefighter.
"As training co-ordinator he loved teaching and passing on his knowledge and had a passion for fire and land management."
Mr Goodwin said the cause of death was unknown and Mr Cramer had recently passed a fitness test.
"Certainly all our firefighters that we send away, all our firefighters go through our fit-for-fire program, through medical testing and so forth, and Peter was certainly part of that," he said.
Mr Goodwin first met Mr Cramer on a deployment to the US in 2003.
"He was always fun, he greeted you with a smile and a solid handshake, and that's how I will remember him," he said.
David Hamilton, president of the United Firefighters Union Victorian branch, said Mr Cramer's tragic death highlighted the strenuous conditions and mental and physical demands placed on firefighters.
"These things can always be done better, and if, unfortunately, these high dangers and situations are occurring, I think the agencies and government probably should look at managing it better or increasing firefighter numbers," Mr Hamilton said.
In a statement, Mr Cramer's wife and family said they wanted to "express how truly well-loved Peter was by everyone who knew him".
Fire Services Commissioner Craig Lapsley said losing a firefighter came as a shock.
"To lose someone in active duty is something you don't plan for," he said.
"We take our caps off to what Peter has done in three decades of service to Victoria through firefighting."
A CFA spokesman said Mr Cramer's colleagues at Swifts Creek and Tyers, where he was a member, had been devastated by the news.
He said Mr Cramer was very well known and well regarded in the Gippsland region because of his work as a trainer.
Mr Cramer would volunteer his time to work with "dozens and dozens and dozens" of new recruits, he said.
"He was a pretty remarkable person," the spokesman said.
Police say there are no suspicious circumstances surrounding Mr Cramer's death.
The Tasmanian and Victorian premiers have sent their condolences to his family.
"I hope that his family can gain some comfort from the sincere gratitude we feel for his willingness to assist us during this bushfire crisis," said Tasmanian Premier Lara Giddings.
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