The 22-year-old faces a string of charges after Queensland Fire and Emergency Services (QFES) said three brigades in the state’s north had been targeted in the past week.

The first fire truck was stolen by the man from a Sarina station on October 31, along with other equipment.

Four days later the same man broke into the nearby Victoria Plains brigade and took a second fire truck, police said.

The thefts in the Mackay region happened while stretched-to-the-limit firefighters battled scores of blazes in Queensland, prompting reinforcements to arrive from Victoria and New Zealand.

Crews from across the state were also sent throughout Queensland as fires threatened properties including a blaze on the Western Downs that claimed a life, burned 26,000 hectares and forced almost 300 people to evacuate.

The Sarina truck was found in nearby bushland on Saturday after a tip-off.

The next day police discovered emergency lights from the Victoria Plains truck hidden in a Sarina house after executing a search warrant.

Officers later went to an unoccupied property at nearby Sarina Range and found the Victoria Plains truck under a tarpaulin.

The truck was extensively damaged and had been covered in white house paint.

The 22-year-old man from Ilbilbie will appear in a Mackay court on Monday charged with a number of offences including two counts each of break and enter, stealing a vehicle and driving with a suspended licence.

QFES Acting Commissioner Steve Smith said three stations in the Mackay region had suffered break-ins.

Fire trucks had been taken from two stations, while the other brigade had essential equipment stolen, including the battery from a vehicle.

“I am deeply disappointed and saddened by the recent theft of fire trucks and essential equipment from our Rural Fire Service (RFS) brigades,” he said.

The Sarina brigade was using another vehicle from the region while the Victoria Plains station was relying on its second truck to respond to emergencies.

“These vehicles and equipment are essential to our ability to respond to emergencies and protect the community,” Acting Commissioner Smith said in a release.

“It’s beyond belief that these brigades have been targeted at a time when our volunteers are working so hard to protect their communities.”

Firefighters have battled about 1000 blazes across Queensland in the past fortnight and about 20 fires are still burning.

Crews are backburning and strengthening containment lines around a blaze at Carnarvon Gorge on the central highlands west of Bundaberg.

Local and Victorian firefighters are on the scene but QFES said the blaze could continue for weeks.

People at Jumna Dam near Cairns in far north Queensland have been told it is still not safe to return.

Meanwhile, a 32-year-old man has been charged with arson after a string of fires at a Kallangur caravan park north of Brisbane.

Police were called after a fire extensively damaged a caravan early on Saturday.

The 32-year-old was spotted nearby and arrested.

He faces a string of charges with police alleging he was responsible for lighting other fires in the region dating back to June.

The man will appear in a Pine Rivers court later on Monday.