After battling huge fires down the south coast, the firies return to Lost River. They might have been away for Christmas but they're determined to make up for it when they get home. Joey is on a mission, looking for steady work. He finds a job as a deck hand with the owner of a fishing trawler. After a few nights out at sea the two men bond and Joey gets some invaluable advice from his new boss that may help to turn his life around. He decides to give it one more try with Fifi and goes to her with a definite plan. Meanwhile, Fifi's career in the Rural Fire Service is under threat when she discovers that Sharpie and Svettie 'borrowed' a fire truck to water their cash crop. Backa smells a rat and gives Fifi a grilling. Will she give up her father and Svettie? Lill rushes home to be with Perry and get their relationship back on track, however, she's still hurt and subconsciously pushes him away, and he knows it; especially once he realises his wife is spending more time with the fire brigade than with him. When Backa and Lill are rostered on to do some routine work down at the station, what is meant to be a 30-minute job turns into an eternity when they are called out to a motor vehicle accident. Perry is drunk and angry when Lill returns home. Life is getting complicated. Word is out that developers are coming over the rise with a plan to build a giant golf course and resort and everyone must face the fact that their town may be changed forever.

Fifi has a new job at the Fire Control Centre and Joey is already doing the maths working out what sort of property they could buy with the extra money. For now though, they’ll have to put up with living at the Sharps-with little privacy and dealing with Hank on a daily basis.

When Fifi takes a call about a factory fire, the Lost River brigade is quickly called out. Joey has just come in from a night shift on the prawn trawler but he’s determined to go straight out to fight the fire, much to Fifi’s concern. The factory is ablaze and the firies are stuck inside searching for a missing squatter and a dog. Joey is exhausted and stops for a moment too long, just as stored paint tins begin to explode. Fifi knows Joey is inside, but she is helpless on the other end of the line. The crews manage to drag themselves out, but with some bad news.

Meanwhile, Lill realises there will be no changing Perry’s mind about having children, but she is not yet ready to give up on the idea for herself. If neither compromise, where will this lead?

Things only get worse when Perry’s ex-wife, Janine, calls to say that Taz has run away from home to be with Hank. Perry and Janine revisit their roles as parents, going to the Sharps to find Taz in tears after Hank has rejected her.

Lill gets home after a long day at the factory fire to find Perry and his first family ensconced in a domestic situation-it’s all a little too close for comfort for Lill. Suddenly a night on a bunk bed down at the fire station is looking like a mighty good alternative…

Russell Newman|Peter Lamb|Helen O'Leary as Luisa, Bradley Byquar as Patto, Rhonda Doyle as Ali, Stephen Leeder as Bryce, Robert Carlton as Kevvie Holman, Mary Regan as Janine Luscombe, Karissa Lane as Skye, Andrew James as Brian Turnbull, Damian Eggleston as Attwood firie, Edmund Cinis as Carter, Keeara Byrnes as Candy