Local fire fighters challenged through testing period
FIRES
THIS is an ideal time to salute the outstanding and tireless work undertaken by our auxiliary fire fighters, especially over the past few weeks when they’ve had to deal with a number of varying incidents.
This past period has been extremely hectic with crews deployed to the Tableland and Mowbray fires; attending car crashes; assisting the ambulance service to transport injured or ill people from the Mossman Gorge and Mossman Mill – this involves carrying injured patients on a stretcher down the gorge walk, which can be as far as three kilometres or down the stairs of the mill in searing heat and in full gear – and crews worked on the tragic microlight crash victim while the family watched on.
“I don’t know if our local community realises that our ‘firies’ are auxiliary workers. This means they are members of our community who work full time jobs as tradies, truck drivers, council workers and supermarket managers to name a few. They are mums and dads and when their pagers sound, they choose to respond to help us,” said the wife of a crew member.
“While we’re all enjoying our weekends they make sure there are enough of them close by to answer the call to help and organise their time around that.”
Although they are paid when they are called out, it is a mere pittance for what they do, and the situations they face.
“They do long hours in their full time work places and have wonderful employers who let them leave work to sometimes literally save the lives of others, then on top of that they go out to help us at all hours of the day and night,” the spokesperson said.
“There are no permanent fire men and women in our area, so without the auxiliaries none of us would be so well looked after.”
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