By Luke Voogt
Grovedale Fire Brigade has launched its “biggest recruiting drive” yet to keep up with increasing call-outs in fast-growing areas of Geelong.
The unit’s 50 active firefighters respond to about 350 incidents a year, but that has recently increased beyond 385, according to training officer James Mildren.
“The growth in Armstrong Creek has increased how busy we’re getting,” he said.
“We’re down on our active response members and with COVID-19 we haven’t been able to recruit.”
Mr Mildren, 32, joined the brigade a decade ago, and has travelled across Australia to fight bushfires and help people “at the lowest point of their lives”.
In January, 2020 he saw firsthand the devastation of bushfires in the Blue Mountains and Gippsland.
“You go 30 or 40 minutes and not see anything left standing,” the Armstrong Creek local said.
“I’ve never seen fire spread as quickly as it did in NSW last summer.”
As an urban brigade, Grovedale CFA responds to car accidents and building fires.
Last October Grovedale firefighters helped other units prevent a house fire in Abigail Court, Armstrong Creek, from spreading to a neighbouring home.
“At the end of the day, we can go back and say ‘this is what we saved and who we helped’,” Mr Mildren said.
“It’s looking at the green grass that’s left there or the house that you’ve saved that gets you turning up again and again.”
Grovedale CFA will hold an information night at 7pm next Wednesday.
“We just want to go through who we are and what we do,” Mr Mildren said.
“This will be the biggest recruiting drive we’ve done.”
For details email rebecca.frost@members.cfa.vic.gov.au
Luke Voogt
