Page 61 - Week 01 - Tuesday, 14 February 2006
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I joined in the training and saw firsthand how effective it is. Trees and shrubs and grass were covered in a thick layer of white foam, looking quite like an old English Christmas card, if it was not for the gum trees. David Prince, the chief fire officer of the ACT Fire Brigade, who was present at the training session, joked that the foam could be made available for Christmas parties. But all jokes aside, and speaking seriously, the work of the CFU volunteers is extremely important and not without risk, even though it is defensive and not offensive.
Members of the units are provided with personal protective equipment, and the unit is equipped with basic fire fighting equipment in a portable trailer based in the street in which it operates. Trailers contain equipment such as portable pumps, stand pipes, hoses, nozzles and other miscellaneous fire fighting fittings.
The value of the CFUs was recently highlighted when working alongside the ACT Fire Brigade and the ACT Rural Fire Service in protecting property from fires occurring on Black Mountain and Wanniassa Hills on extreme high fire days. The effort of all of our volunteers demonstrates the shared responsibility of the community and the government, working in partnership, to protect and preserve life and property and the environment in the ACT.
After the recent training and during the debrief, I highlighted this fact. CFU members were quick to concur. They also commented that the establishment of the CFUs has made another valuable contribution to the community. As is often the case, those who volunteer say they gain as much, if not more, from their participation than what they believe they contribute.
Members of the CFU have cited an increased level of neighbourliness in their street; how they now know their neighbours so much better; how much more aware of each other’s need they are—aware when their neighbours might be away, for instance. They report discovering that there are people in their street who are frail or who have a disability. They speak to neighbours to whom they have never spoken. This community-building is an invaluable by-product.
The efforts of all our community volunteers must never be taken for granted at any time. We do so at the risk of losing an important part of the fabric of our society. You have heard me say in this place on more than one occasion that our volunteer work force is at risk if we do not properly acknowledge its role and the need for its support, despite the high participation numbers we are fortunate to experience here in the ACT.
Our ESA takes the management of our emergency service volunteers extremely seriously. All of the volunteers receive regular professional training, supervision and support as well as the required equipment to do the job. The ACT Emergency Services Authority provides nationally recognised training to SES volunteers to efficiently respond to the effect of storm and flood and to provide support in search and rescue operations. Whilst, as I mentioned earlier, this requires the volunteer to put his or her life on the line, the type of work carried out by emergency service volunteers can be either exciting or boring, rewarding or frustrating, cold or hot, fast or slow, or as many other variables as you can imagine.
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