GOORNONG CFA

2012-01-02T03:35:00.001-08:00

From Fire Sheds to Fire Station

by Barrie. J. Winzar

On November 4th 1903, a "Bush Fire Defence Association" was established in Goornong at a public meeting,

Two years later a fire shed was planned and built by locals in 1906 adjacent to the police station. The shed housed a cart with a 175 gallon tank (700 litres).

In 1917 a Furphy water tank was purchased to replace the cart.

In 1944, stands for two Furphy tanks were erected at the corner or Grant and Langdon streets - the original slip ons. The school bell was rang as a fire alert.

The Country Fire Authority was established in 1944 and local brigades functioned under... In 1947 Captain George Lawrence moved to apply for a truck and equipment. At that time tanks and equipment were disbursed geographically, eg: Lt Jack Clay at Bagshot, Lt C K Hyett at Fosterville.

Permisson was sought from the railways in 1951 to build a fire station across the road from
Ringe's Garage. Construction began in 1952 with all the work done by members, even making every cement brick. Many working bees were necessary!

Not until 1969 was water connected.

At the December meeting in 1978, Captain Gee advised that Goornong was to get a new steel shed fire station and the existing shed would be pulled down! However at the 1979 February meeting, Captain Gee brought to the attention of members the potential growth of Goornong, believing that it warranted the new fire shed be adequate for housing two tankers and perhaps an operations room. The CFA would be so advised! CFA Regional Officer G Summerton attended the next meeting apparently annoyed with the temerity of the Goornong Brigade in not accepting the style of shed allocated. Chairman Reg Westwood enquired as to why the Brigade was not consulted regarding the type of shed. The Regional Officer said that there were plenty of Brigades who would pick up the shed and erect it themselves and then went on to elaborate on what the CFA officers did. Lt Giffney however, pointed out that that was the trouble with the CFA, whereas "the ones who really did the work having no say at all". He went on to point out that the previous shed was built by volunteer labour. The Regional Officer was questioned further on whether he was prepared to try and get a bigger shed. Secretary at the time, Jack Robertson, recorded "R.O. Summerton in a complete change of mind, stated that he was prepared to try". Then B. Giffney moved and Don Symons seconded "that we ask the R. O. to make application for a 30ft x 30ft shed" carried.

However it was not until 1984 that a new shed was built with material supplied by CFA and constructed carried out by members under the leadership of Lt Brian Giffney.

After repeated requests to CFA a toilet building was delivered to the Fire Shed in 2001 and installed by Lt Brian Giffney with the assistance of members.

In 2010, Government funding provided for a Rolling Program Update, in which our Brigade was included.

The Brigade was instrumental in securing the new site, and a welcome change in policy enabled all construction to be carried out by contractors funded and supervised by CFA.

2012-01-02T03:35:00.000-08:00

Its Official

Goornong has a new home - and it's in the form of a Station!!!

After hard work by many, the 24th September 2011, saw the Goornong Fire Brigade officially welcomed into its new home.

The sun was shining, the birds were singing and our new station was being thoroughly investigated by not only the local Goornong Brigade members but several of the local neighbouring Brigades who were in attendance to show their support.

Unforunately our new fearless leader Captain Tim McCrohan was unable to attend, but parting Captain David Patterson was brave enough to return to undertake the role of Master of Ceremonies...

After a fantastic overview of the brigades history by Barrie Winzar and several awards were given out (see future blogs for details), it was over to our fabulous nightowls who provided yet again a beautiful lunch.

The afternoon was spent having good times, catch ups and giving deserving pats on backs... After lots of hard work and planning, our fantastic new building is now our home!!!

Oaks Day at Axedale

2011-06-14T19:15:00.000-07:00

Sunday 22nd May is not usually associated with Oaks Day or for that matter Axedale (Region 2). However for 14 female fire fighters maybe there was some similarity.

A number of neighbouring brigades in Region 2 have for sometime been trying to organise a “ladies” training day, to recognise growing number of female operational members of Axedale and its neighbouring brigades. The day provided an opportunity to meet and discuss issues relating to female operational membership of brigades and engage in a number of training exercises. The brigades involved were Axedale, Junourton, Mosquito Creek and Goornong.
The day also included a presentation by the Peer Support Group (CISM) from Loddon Mallee Region.
Comments from the day showed the overwhelming success and benefits of organising this type of activity. Below are some of the comments;

“…the Peer Support lady gave a great relaxed presentation - she talked about support offered and the importance of this type of day to broaden friendships and confidence. For example she said that if we get called out to a campaign fire, then linking up with another lady that you have met here will make things easier........especially when we need to go to the loo in pairs!”

“…the day gave me the confidence to not hide behind the blokes (because they know how to do it....!!!!) but to step up and have a go. It also made me feel proud to be "One of the experienced ones" amongst the crew, and to actually step forward and show a few tricks of the trade. “

“.. I was also filled with pride and appreciation as Tim McCrohan (incoming Captain) described the growing female membership and the important role we play in the future of the brigade.”

“..the day was filled with learning and laughter and we all agreed that this should become a regular event.”

“…Highlight of the day was seeing Teish soaked and covered in mud with a grin from ear-to-ear after a fun-filled hose aiming skill game!”

A number of the more experienced members stepped up to take a mentoring role with the less experienced members and it was a pleasure to watch others shine after being involved in the day.

Activities for the day were varied and full of laughter and new friendships. The days training activities included important training exercises such as using the quick fill, floating collar tanks, draughting from overhead sources, hose and pump operation. Tim demonstrated the “clinker” from the Gilmac fire and talked about “preserving the scene”.
A big thankyou must go to the Axedale Brigade who organised the day and the trainers for the day – Peter Harkins (Axedale), Tim McCrohan – (Goornong), James Hickson – (Woodvale) and the LMR CISM team.
Final word for the day goes to Felicity

“..The day was bloody brilliant. Lots of great knowledge shared with a nice mix of giggle with Tim doing a great job describing our support for women in our brigades.”

65 Roses Day – 27 May 2011 'Seize the Day'

2011-05-24T20:23:00.000-07:00

65 Roses Day – 27 May 2011
'Seize the Day'

As most of you are aware we have supported the Cystic Fibrosis Support Group in Bendigo over the last couple of years. May 27th is 65 Roses Day. The day hopes to raise awareness, understanding and support for the many sufferes of this condition. So anyone who reads our blog, I would urge you to visit the CF site find out about CF and donate to this worthwhile cause. The links are;
visit www.65rosesday.org.au or www.cfv.org.au

Captain Dave

2011-05-11T18:58:00.000-07:00

Sunday 1st May marked the completion of the latest group completing minimum skills. 14 recruits became accredited - 8 of which were from Goornong.

The exciting thing is that of these 8 members - 6 are local farmers from our district.

With the completion of minimum skills we have 3 members with a total of 90 years experience in the CFA returned to the brigade, Peter and Kevin Howard and Ed English. Their knowledge and experience will be fantastic for the brigade.

On the day 2 of our trainers were also assessed.

This is the second minimum skills course we have run through Goornong in the last 18 months. This has helped increase our ranks by 16, and the courses have produced 28 volunteers in this 18 months.

It has been alot of hard work and special thanks to the following people - Dave Patterson, Denis Crowe, Tim McCrohan, Phil Challis (Bullengarook), Ewan Paton (Huntly) Andrew and Peter Polwarth (Bendigo).

Congratulations again to all involved.

Goornong now has over 40 accredited minimal skills fire fighters on our books...

Time to Change Your Batteries!!!!

2011-04-04T00:25:00.000-07:00

Now Daylight savings has come to an end please don't forget to change the batteries on your smoke detectors!!!
Remember only a working smoke detectors can save lives....

Lifting of the Fire Danger Period

2011-03-02T00:40:00.000-08:00

Well I guess its no surprise that there has been an announcement by the Chief Officer that a declaration ending the Fire Danger period has been announced. Officially the Fire Danger period will end at 1.00 pm on 7th March. I would still like to caution people that even with the rain we have seen a number of fires, exhibiting quite drastic fire behaviour. There is an added dimension for us as fire fighters in trying to contain fires on saturated paddocks and the real possibility of bogging fire trucks. So I urge everyone to exercise caution when burning off or using equipment outdoors. This brings me to my next concern and that is the increase in structure fires around the region so I would urge everyone to check there smoke detector. If anyone is not sure how please contact one of the brigade members and we will arrange for it to be checked.

Our new fire station is taking shape and going up quite rapidly. At the moment we expect to have the official opening in June or July and the Goornong community will be invited to celebrate with us on that occasion.

Thursday 3rd March marks the first night of our 2nd minimum skills course, with 8 people from Goornong participating. The course is designed to provide the skills needed to become an operational fire fighter and is extremely pleasing to see our ranks increasing with this and the last course we ran. Thank you to everyone who has put up their hands many of you have been active members in the past. It is also fantastic to see the increasing number of female and young people wishing to participate. Good luck to you all.

During May Elmore brigade will be celebrating a milestone in their history. More details will be posted as we have them but I am sure that everyone will join the Goornong Brigade in congratulating Elmore on its achievement.

Lastly I have been advised by the Bendigo Council that a Green waste collection bin has been put in the transfer station compound. At this point I have no further detail but will post information as I receive it.

Regards

Captain Dave

Who'll stop the rain and other song title's

2011-02-09T17:05:00.000-08:00

Well December and January have come and gone with little fire activity in the Goornong assignment area (no great surprise really) and I was wondering if we perhaps should rename ourselves to the Goornong Coast Guard or Goornong CFA boat flotilla. We have had a number of call outs which have been for assistance with flood relief and a number of our volunteers have been on standby should they be needed for flood assistance. Up to this point we have not been used in that role but I would like to take this opportunity to thank not only all those that put up their hand but also to those that stayed around in case they were needed on home soil. Thankfully though most of the Goornong community has been spared major structraul damage, although I suspect a few crops and public assets have not been so lucky. Here are a couple of pictures of the Campaspe River and the Barnadown bridge damage. The Barnadown bridge damage did not become evident till many days after the flood water so it is a timely warning that even though the flood has dissipated there may be some delayed damage.

The brigade elections are coming up in April and I would urge all members to consider who they would like on the management team and forward the nominations to Flic before the March meeting. Our next minimum skill course will commence in March and its pleasing to see we have another 8 participants from the Goornong brigade. This is a fantastic effort and I have no doubt they will be a great asset to our brigade and the community. One last comment - Please be aware of the speed restriction and speed camera on the Bagshot Rail crossing. I have it on good authority that these are now fully functional. All brigade vehicles (whether code 1, code 3 or weekly test) must comply with the signed speed limit.

Gilmac Hay shed fire

2010-12-12T00:59:00.000-08:00

Well they say it never rains but it pours and the rains have certainly kept up which presents it’s own set of problems. We had to cancel our training day - un bogging trucks is not part of our normal training and we just didn’t have enough lighter fluid (or napalm) to actually get anything to burn. Then Friday morning (3.17 am to be exact) the page came through – fire at Gilmacs hay processing Comer Lane Goornong. For the uninitiated this is one of the biggest hay processing plants in Victoria and as luck would have it the fire was in the smallest shed containing 3000 tonnes of premium hay bound for export.

As our crews arrived it was clear that the structure was fully involved and the decision to make tankers 6 and pumpers two was transmitted to Vic fire. The biggest concern for the crew and incident controller (Tim) was the processing plant. It was already showing signs of heat distress from the radiant heat. Tim and the crew did a fantastic job with only superficial damage to the wall of the processing plant. The shed containing the hay was too far gone so it became an asset protection and containment exercise. In the end there were 12 appliances including the ladder platform from Bendigo. The rain over the preceding weeks provided a further complication as the access to the water sources was virtually mud. Many thanks to the crews from our neighbouring brigades for their prompt support and assistance. The shed continued to burn for the next 4 days and the final bill being around 1.5 million dollars.

Code 1 Trivia night

2010-12-12T00:52:00.001-08:00

Friday night (19th Nov) saw the inaugural Code 1 Trivia night take place at Goornong. The night is organised by the brigade to support the Cystic Fibrosis Support Group. This group provides support and assistance to families with children suffering from cystic fibrosis inn the Bendigo region. (More information can be obtained at http://www.cysticfibrosisaustralia.org.au/ )

Around 80 people participate in the night from a variety of locations and back grounds with a meal provide by the local hotel. Our organisers were overwhelmed by the generosity of sponsors as well as the interest shown in attending the night. To all those who missed out I have been assured the event will return bigger and better next year. The overall winners for the night were the Goanna’s team whose name will now go down for posterity on the Code 1 Trivia night trophy. Whilst the final tally for the funds raised is still being tallied it seems we will have in excess of $1000.00 for the support group and their activities. A fantastic result and a real credit to Denis and Peter from the brigade, whose brain child this was and who ran with the initiative. And many thanks to those who supported and participated in the night. Anyone who would like to assist the support group please contact the brigade and we will give you the contact details. And a big thanks goes to Teisha and Kate who ran the Kids corner for the night.

Finally thanks to our sponsors who assisted us with making the night a success.

Junior Volunteer Development Program - Hattah

2010-09-28T21:55:00.000-07:00

One of the brigades younger members was successful in being accepted to participate in the Junior Development Program held at Hattah recently. Teisha wrote about her experiences and presented a report to our recent brigade meeting. It is obvious to me the benefits to our younger members in participating in activities such as this.

Below is Teisha's dairy:

"Day 1: On the morning of the 20th of September 2010, 16 people from around the district 2 and from the surrounding districts. 6 of the 16 people caught the plane from Bendigo, there were 2 planes, 1 plane going to Echuca to pick 5 people up and the 2nd plane went to Maryborough to pick up another 3 people. Both planes then continued onto Mildura airport, we then got on a bus as a group of 14 people. We stopped at Redcliff to pick up 2 girls then we continued to Hattah Kulkyne national park, where Sextons home stead is, that is where we are staying for the 4days. When we got to Sextons Homestead we met the 4 leaders, Carol (who was our theory Leader), Michel (our practical Leader), Pam (who we called mum), Bernie (Our practical Leader), then there was Stan who did the cooking for us. Once we unpacked and every one had runners on we had to meet in the chuck house (where we ate), Michel then told us that we were playing a game called Chaos, then Spaceship stepping stones. Then we did some theory work and we were given a block of wood that we had to carry around with us until we wrote a submission letter to our leaders. The block of wood was our ‘baggage’, we had to write our burdens on it. After the theory work we had free time until 7 that is when we had tea. I made good friends with 3 others so we decided to go for a walk in the bush to see what is around. Then there was tea then we had a camp fire then free time again.

Day 2: We got woken up at 7.15, breakfast was at 7.30 then we were playing Chaos at 8.00 and spaceships at 8.30. Chaos and spaceships are our morning and afternoon game that we do every day. We then got right into rock climbing, then more theory until lunch time. After lunch we as a team decided to write the submission letter about our ‘Baggage’. It took us all afternoon to write it because we still had to do the other activities that they had planned for us. We then went outside and split into 2 groups, my group went over the where the giant swing and the other group went over to the rock climbing wall. Neither group had a any idea what we were doing, then Bernie brought over 15 milk creates while we were putting on our gear. My first shot I only got 2 because I couldn’t get my leg up high enough cause it was tapped, the second go I got to 10 creates then I calmed my creates and jumped. We then did more theory and then had free time till tea, so we finished off our submission then we handed it in. The submission past so we didn’t have to carry around our ‘baggage’ around with us anymore. Later that night after tea we had a ceremony for our ‘baggage’ then we had to go into the HAMS Integrity to get split into groups to do different activities, these included, 6 figure map points, map reading, compass work and radios.

We then had an early night because we knew that we were going to be doing the night mission thing. We got woken up at about 11.20 and we had to be in the integrity by 11.30pm to discuss what was going to happen. Right on midnight we set out to go for our roughly 6km round walk. The mission included, getting us to the T-intersection on the Murray River. From there we had to locate 2 packages, we found them, 1 bag was 10 life jackets and the other was 8 paddles for a canoe. We then split into 2 groups a walking group and a canoeing group. We had to get half way and locate a flashing device and that is where we had to swap but before that we had to make fire and take a picture of us. Then my group got into the canoe and paddled the rest of the way to camp. We then went into the Integrity to solve a puzzle with was in a shape of a T but it was in like 5 pieces and it isn't very easy at 4.40am Wednesday morning to do. But we managed to do it then we got to go to bed.

Day 3: We got to sleep in till 10am but I was already awake at 7. After bacon and egg for breakfast we played Chaos and spaceships, then we went in for a debrief about the night mission. Then we went and did the Flying Possum. That is where there is 4 off the line at once, 1 person is going up the wall and the other 3 are watching the other 12 of us are connected to a rope and we have to pull the person that is attached up the wall in how ever many bounces they want. My first go was 5 the second go it was 2 jumps. Then we did some more theory work. After the theory work of setting our goals we were allowed to go out and go on the giant swing, it was so fun. One person was out on a pontoon and they had to catch balls as we were throwing them from up in the air after we had pulled the pin. Then we had tea and did more theory work then we had "warm and fuzzy night" and watched a movie, then we all went to bed.

Day 4: We had to get up early so it was a 7.20 start, breaky was at 7.30 and our chaos game was at 8 and spaceships was at 8.30. We finally complete spaceships, took us all 4 days but we got there in the end. After we finished that we had another mission that we had to complete. The mission was, there are acid balls that have risen from out of the group and to prevent them from getting into the water way and contaminating Mildura's and Adelaide's water. We split ourselves up into 3 groups, group 1, group 2 and group 3. 1 person out of group one would be attached to 2 pulley systems, one rope that pulls you straight up and the other one that pulls you to the side. The goal was to get the acid balls out without touch the group otherwise you had 30secs to get the acid ball into the safe tube then you would be dead, no one died. After we completed that mission we had a debrief then we had lunch then it was time to go. We packed up the bus then boarded after saying good bye to the leaders.
On the way to Hattah the bus ride was soooo quite but on the way back we were really noisy, singing songs, talking loudly, mucking around. Thanks to all the participants and leaders.

Andy - Knowsley       Blair - Marong        Teisha - Goornong       Katelyn - Tongala     Dominic - Echuca    Matt - Echuca

Elliot - Stanhope        Amber - Stanhope   Cassy - Eaglehawk       Brett - Castlemaine    Brendan - Kyneton

Seany - Woodend      Jayden - Maryborough   Krystin - Mt Cameron      Isabel - Red Cliffs     Avalon - Red Cliffs"

The Big Wet

2010-09-07T17:17:00.000-07:00

And it started raining – and kept raining and now instead of drought we have floods. Here are a couple of pictures of the Russel’s Bridge river crossing. From my memory it has been about 10 to 12 years since we have seen water over this low level bridge on the Campaspe River. Looking around our patch at the water in Crab Hole creek and other areas I reckon its been a similar time since I have seen that. Its great to see and the flushing of the rivers and creeks will be a good thing. Many of the CFA volunteers have been assisting the SES and their communities in flood relief works.

As far as the brigade goes there have been only a couple of small incidents. We are now into September and we will be starting to get busy again with training and Fire Danger Period preparedness. The Whipstick group will be holding a group exercise in early October.

The brigade will also commence some fuel reduction burns around the town during October and November. Residents are advised that there will be smoke around the town as we commence these burns. Our immediate priorities will be to clear the large mounds of trees and debris in the recreation reserve. These will burn for days but present a serious hazard to the community in a fire situation. We need to complete these burns to ensure the safety of the town during the fire season.

We have also been advised the Goornong Fire Brigade and community are to receive a new Fire station. It is expected the new station will be completed around April/May 2011. Given the amount of development around the Goornong Assignment area this is welcome news and will be an asset for the community and an investment in the future.

Lastly congratulation to Teisha F on being accepted for the develpment and leadership development course.

The Quiet Months!!!!!!

2010-08-10T17:36:00.000-07:00

June through to November is supposed to be the quiet months for us but this year has been pretty busy (by our standards). The turn up for events has been great with many of our new members getting their yellow suits good and dirty. Probably the biggest event was the fire at Okie Dokie farm with a fire in the historic homestead. The property has had a variety of owners and names including John Farnham. Crews from Goornong, Elmore, Huntly, Bendigo and Toolleen fought the blaze. It had well and truly taken hold by the time 000 were notified. The crews did a fantastic job in containing the fire and mopping. Thanks also to the Red Cross for breakfast and coffee. It is probably the most significant incident for the brigade so far this year. The other significant incident was a fire in the ventilation shaft at the Fosterville Mine which Goornong, Huntly, Bendigo and Axedale attended. Pictured is the Okie Dokie fire.

Crews mopping up after the fire

Lastly the Junior Brigade launch has been postponed for a few months to allow us to better prepare for the commencement of activities. We felt we weren’t quite in a position to make the best effort possible to make it a success. We will keep you posted on the progress and hopefully we will be announcing a start date in the near future.

Thanks to all our volunteers and those that have supported us from other brigades over the past few months.

Junior Brigade is on the move

2010-06-15T02:45:00.000-07:00

Well we have got past most of the hurdles to commence our Junior Brigade. We will be holding an information session at the Goornong Rec Reserve on Tuesday 27th July at 7.00pm. Anyone aged 11 to 15 years old and interested should talk to their parents and come along to the meeting on the 27th (with parent/guardian). At this point if we get enough interested the Juniors will meet once a month and will have a number of activities planned including game nights, excursions, first aid, plus much much more.
Any one interested please email us for more details.

Chrysler Car Club Motorkana

2010-06-15T02:21:00.000-07:00

Saturday 12th June Goornong and Raywood CFA head off bright and early on a crisp morning (bloody cold actually) at the invitation of the Chrysler Car Club to help them with their Motorkana. We were asked to do the parking duties, be on hand in case someone got over enthusiastic and set fire to their prize possessions etc. All the proceeds from the parking were donated to the brigades and we raised a total of $680 for the day. Not a bad effort and our thanks go to the car club for considering us and the generosity of the patrons. Also our thanks to Raywood for their help. Here are a couple of photos from the day.

Our Newest Recruit has arrived

2010-05-20T23:52:00.000-07:00

Our latest recruit has just arrived, although it may be sometime before Mum and Dad let her loose on a hose. Congratulations to Donna and Ken on the birth of Kate Maree born Wednesday evening. Mum and Bub are doing well - we haven't heard about Dad. Congratulations guys from all the brigade members.
Captn Dave

65 Roses Day - Cystic Fibrosis

2010-05-17T15:17:00.000-07:00

As members of our brigade would know we try to support Cystic Fibrosis, Australia in any small way we can. Next week there is an awareness day, to be precise it will be Friday 28th May. Called 65 Roses Day it is designed to raise awareness of and raise funds for research into Cystic Fibrosis. I would urge any volunteers or follows of our blog out there who have a couple dollars to spare to buy a wrist band, pen or badge to assist this great cause. The merchandise is on sale at most larger stores that I know of and probably lots of other places. More information about 65 Roses day is available at the Cystic Fibrosis web site http://www.cysticfibrosis.org.au/65rosesday/
More information about Cystic Fibrosis can be found at the Cystic Fibrosis - Australia web site http://www.cysticfibrosis.org.au

Interesting Links

2010-05-11T00:47:00.000-07:00

The brigade has had a mention in a couple of stories and I also came across an article I thought may interest a few people.
The first link is to the story on our training day at the NDTG.
http://www.cfaconnect.net.au/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=1966&I
The second link is to a story on the Murtoa Brigade who are doing some great things and seem to have a philosophy similar to ours.
http://www.cfaconnect.net.au/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=1615&Itemid=42

Patto

Group Training Day NDTG

2010-05-02T20:27:00.000-07:00

Sunday 1st May and its off to the NDTG for the Elmore Group training day. We have invited Raywood to join us for the day given in the new group structure we may be in the same Group. Elmore, Kamarooka, Raywood and Goornong made up the contingent of 5 trucks and about 25 personal plus the 6 volunteer instructors for a pretty full day. There was also a group from Murrabit doing off road training on the new course. Nice new truck guys. The activities for the day were Gas fire (domestic) a pole fire and remote structure fire. Most of the crews were a mix of new members or crew leaders and some more experienced volunteers. CFA media also came a long and I believe a story and photos of the day will be on CFA connect pretty soon. (Thanks Leith)

It was great to see many of the volunteers step up and take on roles and mentored in areas outside their comfort zones. Many had a dip at IC and Crew leader roles. The way they absorbed the information, listened and reacted to the mentors and instructors can only be a plus for brigades as fossils like my self hand over the reigns.

The day culminated in an exercise which the crews had not been told about and was presented as a "Gas bullet" fire. In fact when the crews responded they had a gas bullet fire with casualties.As the crews bought the gas fire under control another fire erupted in the adjacent service station, also with casualties.

The responsee by crew, crew leaders and IC was excellent under pressure. The comments after the exercise indicated the worth of providing this type of training. Thanks to all who participated and making the day worth while. Thanks to Jason (Elmore Group) for his organisation of the day and also to the Pad Instructors.

Bendigo Torchlight and other stuff

2010-04-07T22:58:00.000-07:00

Well another Bendigo Easter Fair has come and gone and a small contingent of us from the Elmore Group walk, shuffled, dawdled and/or tried to march. Unfortunately we have no photos as the photographer and his camera were not getting along on the night which is unfortunate because it will probably be the last time the Elmore Group in its current form will be together. With the impending changes next year will look a little different I guess.
Another milestone we reach was the of the 72nd skills maintenance drill - all achieved in 6 months. Credit must go to Tim and Donna who have driven the exercise and thanks to all the members who have taken up the challenge. We are now getting lots of useful information about our assignment area and the troops are gaining valuable knowledge. All useful stuff when it all goes pear shaped.
I would like welcome aboard all the new firefiighters from the class of 2010. well that's it for this post a bit boring but we will keep trying.

Class of 2010 minimum skills

2010-03-17T20:45:00.000-07:00

The class of 2010 minimum skills has now been completed and was a resounding success. All participants have successfully completed both the theory and practical sessions. Congratulations to all participants who showed a willingness and enthusiasm which made the instructors and assessors jobs just that little bit easier. Here are a few happy snaps of the day. A big thanks to all who participated, the instructors Brett and Peter. Also a thanks to Denis and Tim for their tireless efforts to get the crews up to fantastic standard.

New Training Drills Roster

2010-03-15T05:43:00.000-07:00

Goornong has developed a drills roster with works along side the Sunday Tanker Run Roster. All active members are rostered to take the tankers out each 4 weeks or so. This shares the load amongst the team but also allows members the opportunity to maintain their skills.

Our brigade assignment area is divided into approx 50 different sectors or drills. Each Sunday, both our tankers and crews complete one of those drills. Crews are assigned tasks based on their skills and requested to follow the map instructions.

The drills sheets - one is posted - has a poorly detailed map, which allows crew to use the Spatial Vision maps to determine exactly where the route should be. Our focus with this is to provide situational awareness at all times. Specific points will be listed and crews are expected to provide GPS locations from our onboard Garmin GPS units. A benefit of these maps is to also encourage crews to travel roads/tracks usually not frequented and gain a better understanding of our total brigade assignment area.

Crews are also requested to provide information on the condition of roads/tracks, hazards and obstructions, water points, poor signage and wrong map road names, access concerns and hydrant testing. Using the log below the map, crews are requested to log details which also provides a written assessment of the task/concerns but also allows crews to maintain their log keeping skills - so when operating in anger (a job) crews will naturally keep a log - something all believe is vitally important.
Information is collated and passed onto the Brigade management team where it is dispersed to relevant government/private agencies for issues and concerns to be addressed. A log is kept to provide BMT access to what has and has not been completed.
We've been able to identify strengths and weaknesses within our crews and tailor training to suit those needs. Once drills are completed, details are entered into the CFA training departments online skills maintenance website, giving skills maintenance recognition to all involved. With this system, we will have approx 104 skills maintenance sessions a year.
Special thanks also needs to go to Donna P for Her tireless work in setting up and maintaining the drills system.

Wildfire minimum skills class of 2010

2010-03-03T13:28:00.000-08:00

We finally got our wildfire minimum skill course at Goornong and it proved to be a resounding success. In total 15 new recruits have started the course. The recruits come from Elmore, Kamarooka, Huntly and Goornong and will greatly improve the volunteer base for these brigades. All recruits have completed and passed the theory component with only the practical day to go. Photos are of one of a number of practical training sessions being run to prepare the students for their last session. Photos show Goornong tanker 2 with crew playing "Grass Fire Soccer"

The concept is, using a ball as the fire edge, the crews have to control the travel of the ball using hoses in the standard config for running grass fire. In addition we added a couple of tankers and when the leading tanker loses control of the ball or it comes level with cab of the tanker, the tanker pulls off and the second tanker in line takes over.
All those involved had a bit of fun but more importantly they gained practical skills and some valuable lessons in team work.

Good save by Goornong and Elmore

2010-02-02T14:42:00.000-08:00

A small grass and scrub fire in the rear of a property at the Cnr Mayreef Rd and Collins Rd provided a distraction for Goornong and Elmore brigades on Tuesday 3rd Feb. The fire had some potential to be a problem with the warm conditions and prevailing winds. The fire was started by a fallen power line in the rear of the property and quickly spread along the grass towards the main house and derelict structure at rear getting into dead trees around the house. The gusty wind picking up embers with a potential to spot in the stubble paddock adjacent. The Goornong and Elmore crew quickly extinguished and blacked out ensuring the scene was safe. Good work Denis, Sharon and Dave Christie. Photos show offending pole and burnt grass area.

Combined Goornong, Elmore and Huntly Training Day NDTG

2010-01-24T22:26:00.000-08:00

In late October (yep I know a bit late with pics) Goornong, Elmore and Huntly brigades shared a joint training exercise at the Northern District Training Ground. We ran through remote structure fires, pole fires and running petrol fires. The crews joined in the spirit and worked well together, quickly developing a rapport and camaraderie each other.

On left Goornong crew arriving and commencing the 38mm hose lay.
Center the pole fire which rapidly turned into a grass and scrub (unplanned)
and right is the combined teams attacking the running petrol fire.

A good day was had by all and provide an opportunity for skills development and interaction with our neighboring brigades.

Is this our new mascot??

2009-12-28T17:39:00.000-08:00

art work by Tracey P Dec 09 (copyright)

Official Handover of GoornongTanker 2

2009-12-28T17:18:00.000-08:00

In October we final had the official handover of Goornong Tanker 2. Brigades from the neighbouring area helped us celebrate this day and included Junourtoun, Elmore, Axedale and Huntly. Region 2 was represented by Dale Stemmer. The hand over was conducted by Jacinata Allan MP, Member for Bendigo East. Also in attendance were members of Northgate Minerals, and the Elmore Field days committee who provided valuable support in acquiring the tanker. City of Greater Bendigo was represented by Mayor Kevin Gibbins. BBQ lunch followed with Jacinta Allan presenting the annual firefighter of the year award. This year we had joint winners - congratulations to Keith and Sharon both well deserving of the award.

Goornong School Plantation FR burn

2009-11-04T15:01:00.000-08:00

On Tuesday 3 Nov the brigade commenced its program of fuel reduction burns around the township. The old school plantation block behind the pool required our attention. The block had not been cleaned or managed for some years. One of our volunteers donated his time and bobcat to help clear understory and leaf litter in preparation for the burn. (Thanks Peter) I am not sure how much we actually pulled out but in a lot of the area the leaf litter was 6 to 8 inches deep. We commenced the burn around 6.30pm after each member was given an opportunity to present a brief summary of how they would approach the burn. The pictures tell the rest. The burn was reasonably successful, but not all that clean, and provided challenges for the members in relation to changing weather condition, significant treed areas and hazards on the ground. At the end a job well done.

Fire Awareness Day - Goornong Primary School

2009-11-04T14:44:00.000-08:00

The Goornong Primary School had a fire awareness day during October. The whole school participated with Gary, the CFA Community Ed guy keeping the kids entertained while delivering an important message about keeping themselves safe. Garry provide some highly entertaining practical approaches which brought some interesting comments and lots of laughs for the kids.

After the indoor session the grade prep to 3 had a chance to go over Goornong Tanker 2 and have a play with some of the equipment including using the live reel with a new Protek 361 monitor. A number of us almost got wet but wasn't through lack of trying on the students part. The 4 to 6 grades unfortunately missed an opportunity as luck would have it we got a fire call to a grass and scrub.

Thanks to Gary, the Community Ed guy and Lex, principal Goornong PS

Recent news article on Goornong CFA

2009-09-22T16:20:00.000-07:00

The Goornong Brigade recently figured in an article in the Bendigo Miner. A copy of the article is seen on left. The article provided an opportunity thank publicly those organisation who helped fund new equipment.

Our latest recruits complete minimum skills

2009-08-22T00:10:00.000-07:00

Congratulations to Damian and Mathew our 2 latest recruits who have completed their minimum skills. They are pictured here being congratulated by Brett , Region 2 Wildfire Instructor. Well done guys.

Support for the Brigade

2009-08-09T21:33:00.000-07:00

Over the last 12 to 18 months we have had a huge amount of support from both the local community and businesses. This support has enabled us to provide new and replacement equipment to ensure we continue to support the community through emergency response and above all do this in as safe an environment as possible. I would like to acknowledge the support provided by the following organisations:

Elmore Field Days Committee
Northgate (Fosterville) Mining
Metricon Homes
Gilmacs Pty Ltd
Goornong CFA Night Owls
CFA Region 2
Broader Goornong Community
Volunteers of the Goornong Brigade

Without the support of these people many of our achievements over the past 12 months would not have been possible.
A reminder to all that we are less than 100 days away from the start of the Fire Danger Period.

New Equipment

2009-07-20T23:27:00.000-07:00

The brigade has just taken delivery of a number of new pieces of equipment thanks to the generosity of local businesses. These additions will help us in delivering assistance to our local community at the same time ensuring the safety of our volunteers.
Northgate Mining (Fosterville) provided funds to purchase 2 30mtr lengths of 25ml lay flat hose, 2 Protek 361 nozzles and associated hardware. Total Cost $2100.
Metricon Homes have also donated to the brigade $1000 which has been used to purchase 16 state of art helmet lights for operational firefighters. Pictured are representative from Metricon Homes and the Goornong CFA receiving the community cheque.

I would like to express our gratitude to these companies for their support in ensuring our on going effort to make our community and our volunteers safer.

Patto

Class A foam training Monday 22nd June

2009-06-23T15:44:00.000-07:00

Monday evening saw the second day of class A foam training for the Goornong crew. We decided to make it interesting so 2 stacks of pallets later and a Firebug we had our test environment ready. The test was to, hopefully, show the benefits of foam against straight water. The crew divided into 2 teams. Tanker 1 the foamers and Tanker 2 the straight water. The results are unclear as we think each team got a bit competetive and may have employed diversionary tactics. Tanker 2 still trying to claim victory. Everyone enjoyed the training and provide an excellent team building exercise as well.
Patto

2009-04-26T03:08:00.000-07:00

The torch light procession is held annually in Bendigo on Easter Sunday. This year, the Elmore group participated, with 24 members marching. The event was well organised by Keith Cumming, with two vehicles participating from the group (Elmore's forward command vehicle and Goornong's new tanker - pictured).

All members had a great time, and look forward to next year. Pictured in the photo are:- Front row from left:- David Patterson, Jason Carty, Tracey Taig, Braden Cumming, Keith Cumming, Wendy Young. Standing from left:- Rowan Lonsdale, Ros Maber, Ian Lonsdale, Bruce Anderson, Paul Maber, Graeme McKenzie, Glenn Trewick, Dianne Patterson, Colin Walker, Doug Strawhorn, Janet Filbey, Lorriane Lehney, Les Varker, Back of tanker from Left:- Tim McCrohan, Felicity Nicholls, Sharron Fullex.

2009-04-05T03:05:00.000-07:00

4WD driver training was conducted in Huntly on 3rd and 4th April. Three members (Capt David Patterson, Lt Tim McCrohan & Denis Crowe) had the opportunity to hone their skills in difficult terrain.

Special thanks goes to the Mandurang, Sutton Grange and Mosquito Creek Brigades for the use of their tankers and Huntly for the use of their station, including providing morning tea, lunch and afternoon tea.

It was the first time our new 1200 litre light tanker had been used in this environment. Members of other brigades also had the opportunity to test this tanker, with the final result being that it preformed extremely well, climbing a 30 degree slope in low range 2nd gear.

Little water was lost from the light tanker overflow throughout the day, compared to the Heavy 3.4C Hino twin cab tanker which lost approx half of its 3000 litre capacity. The general consensus was `the Light tanker is a very good thing'.