The Country Fire Authority, CFA, is asking regional Victorians to ‘Give Us a Hand’ in an effort to recruit new volunteers to join its 52,000 community-minded members in protecting lives and property across the state.
The call-out is part of a new volunteer recruitment campaign, which aims to encourage selfless Victorians to take up a firefighting or support role with their local CFA brigade.
Volunteers could be people looking to make the most of their spare time, are new to their community, or just want to be part of a group made up of like-minded people.
CFA brigades have flexible volunteering arrangements and diverse roles to suit anyone’s skills and needs.
There are more than 1200 CFA brigades across Victoria, responding to a range of emergency incidents and serving communities every day.
From high angle rescues, structure, grass and scrub fires to hazmat and road crash rescues, no two days are the same.
CFA chief officer Jason Heffernan said CFA was a great place to volunteer, meet new people and learn new skills.
“Volunteers are the backbone of the firefighting and emergency response network across Victoria,” he said.
“We are calling on all community-minded individuals who are looking for a new challenge to consider joining their local brigade and apply their expertise and knowledge to CFA.
“Whether you want to jump on the truck and respond to incidents, or take up a brigade support position, we’ll find a role that suits you and your brigade.”
Brigades are most commonly looking for people from all backgrounds who have the capacity to take up roles as daytime responders. CFA is particularly interested in hearing from young people who want to make a difference in their community.
“The rewards of being a CFA volunteer are immeasurable and our members make a real difference in their communities,” Mr Heffernan said.
Wandong, Seymour and Broadford brigades are particularly keen to recruit new members to increase volunteers at their brigades.
Broadford Fire Brigade hosted an open day and a recruitment night in February in a bid to boost membership.
Broadford captain Jamie Duffy said volunteers were needed not just for firefighting roles, but for brigade support and administration.
“We are actively recruiting for more members to join us, and welcome anyone to join us to see if being a CFA volunteer is the right fit,” he said.
“We are particularly keen to attract people who can be firefighting responders during the day as many of our existing members are not always available, and we’re also keen to attract young people.”
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Once an expression of interest form is submitted online, the local brigade will contact those people interested regarding the next steps.
