SA Firefighter

So the conclusion of your post CFS_Firey is: Every able firefighter should have the BA Ticket as part of OHS&W.  Now we know that wont happen till a royal commission tells the CFS to ey...

Zippy I agree with the sentiments of your post and the with SA_Firey. I can see some merit in the having people able to use BA. Considering that I have been to many a structure fire and car fire or refuse fire wear I can't use BA as we don't have BA on the QAV. Using defensive fire fighting techniques to stop the spread of the fire to the neighbours or to other property is good but to those that have lost it all due to a brigade inability to respond properly to a fire that could of been contained to a room or rooms can bring the brigade and service into question by the community it supports.

Maybe that's why Euan wants to cut the CFS back to an only rural service...

I have and along with the Brigade pushed for CABA to be part of our response but the head set in the service has literally some alternative idealogical plane of thinking. I remember an RC telling members of the  Brigade that sorry you don't deserve BA because your houses burn to quickly. Well they certainly do if it takes nearly an hour for them to get to your town with a CABA appliance. Their assessment of the town that of owing to a lack of two story dwelling and a part time pub, school, service station and a national highway we didn't need CABA. All his information was based on incorrect information.

I remember at a group meeting not so long ago that we had a discussion about reducing the number of sets of CABA in the Group as we had more sets than operators. The main problems is getting to Adelaide or having the entire weekend off for the course which is one of the problems for the CFS. I am a firm believer that like in the SES where SFA is part of the required training so should BA in the CFS (mind you I also believe that SFA should also be part of the BF1  )

fair suck.....2 jobs a year...

Hate tell you they did more than 2 jobs a year! last year according to the promotion unit website they did in 26 (2007/08), 16 (2006/07), 18 (2005/06) and from some inside information in that neck of the woods they are sitting on 22 for the last year.

17:55:33 18-07-09 MFS: TRUCK NOW OPERATIONAL- RESTOWED- KEEP REVS ABOVE 1500 RPM AT ALL TIMES CFS Iron Knob Response

hhmmm looks like they didn have the RPM above 1000 at the RCR last night (thought that was common knowledge)

They have only recently got their truck back after nearly killing it it had done on it

fridge mounted on it
new stand pipe brackets
new steps for everywhere on the truck
more reinforcing for the bull bar
new brackets for extinguishers, and fire lighter
two new locker doors from breaking the previous two
having the truck completely rewired
tank volume depth gauge after breaking the last one
a couple of new tyres

I remember on one of the last region 4 composite strike teams one of the strike teams leaders saying from that region that were ever he goes Iron Knob is sure to follow

Alan I was under the impression that we are having a deep and meaningful thread about what the CFSVA can do and what they should be doing.

I can send in all types of information that we have submitted to group and region about problems in which the built in environment is the focus that we are meant to inhabit or the short comming in meeting the needs of the community. All this information maybe wonderful and then lets multiple that by all the brigades in the state. The resulting effect is that the poor and only employee of the CFSVA is so over worked at trying to make head and tail along with the relationships between all the data she is given. Even the executive see the tsunami of information and they two feel somewhat overwhelmed by all the information. With the outcome being no action by all.

United is not limited to working together but also includes the doing that work in a coordinated approach. For effective data collection and lobbying have a look at the Kondinin Group very good at effecting change in the agricultural machinery industry by sending out surveys to members that collects data in a standard way and them makes it easy for analysing to produce some very good technical reports.

I remember a little saying about computers garbage in is garbage out: No one wants that to be the case with CFSVA

I can't see why the various volunteer ESO can't join or amalgamate or form allegiances to act as one. Trade unions have done it i.e. what do forestry workers and manufacture workers have in common? Answer they share the same union.

Meeting are fine but the CFS "meeting out" people when you have brigade, group non operational meeting i.e. training or OHS&W or communications and finally operational meetings. The  CFSVA should aim at using other ways of communicating with it members. CFSVA should look at collecting information so that it can argue with facts. Yes the CFSVA has raised awareness of issues in the CFS but the organization needs to have follow through by using data and facts.

I will admit I don't go to CFSVA meetings as I don't see it as practical to drive 200 + km and then back again for our regional CFSVA meeting considering that we don't have a group CFSVA meetings.

It is not a question being average or the timing as in the region that I am from they get done from march through to early may.

The more important thing is that it is being documented a documented that is dated. If you want to change the systems it is no use trying to bring in change but to create that change from the inside using the systems own tools against it.

Chook your example of the cockburn brigade is good one but it needs to be put into correct context. I do know that this is something of an oddity but people want real change in the CFS acting on rumour, Chinese whispers and second hand information will not achieve the desired outcome that we all want to hear.

Cockburn closed due the fact that it was a brigade without sufficient membership. The work that is done of the promotions website particularly on Brigade statistics (yes I do know they are supplied from CFS HQ) does provide a very different picture to who is active and who is not. Hark do I hear you ask why have some brigades have zero hours well those brigade are their own worst emany - All I can say is fill out that paperwork create that paper trail; as all that paper work they try to drown us in can be used to each and every brigade advantage.

As the old adage goes the proof is in the pudding all we have to is add water and stir 

OUTCOME: To produce those headlines that RescueHazmat imagines

Me thinks that fridgey and me are talking about the same brigade.

From talking to a member of the brigade who was told by someone further up the chain that their house burn to quick and having anything better their was a waste of resources. They said they did not consider that a pub, a servo and a school of 35 students with some community infrastructure was worth protecting.

I now that the state a bit tight on the cash but who's going to tell the residents of that town you gonna have to wait for the nearest service to arrive which is a min of 60 k's away. I wonder if they will survive to tell the tale of how it went down.

I heard this at a community event that a brigade which leases it building could be closed as the CFS does have the money to either lease a building or construct one. Is the new CFS motto safety first only if it financial viable 

That what I heard at the last group meeting that alerts was going to be shutdown and replaced with a new system where only alelaide fire can ring you on alerts for a conferance call. Yes all other detail that you posted are correct

I was contacted by the sunday mail and declined but in hind sight I should of spoken up. Some the items that have been purchased by Brigades in my neck of the woods include, first aid kits, wet weather gear, paint for the station, emergency lighting for the station and getting computer donated to the Brigade.

When I read financial report os of brigade expenaces where it states that nearly $1000 is spent on station mainteance and no sign of it has occured or $450.00 on a fax maichine and the list goes; makes me wonder where the money really goes.

We were issued with ten pager lost two pagers one pager no longer works and has been repaired twice in qucik sucession. We have five members without pagers. Soluation is two pronged send out an sms and have a phone tree going for those with pagers. Yes it is slow but it works

Hear Hear Bill,

The only correction that I I think needs to be made beyond the all ready said SFEC comment is that it not a lack of vision or funding to towards the more urban brigade to the rural brigades rather to the agricultural brigades as some more of the remote brigades are provided with tokens to satisfy them. My brigade questions these norms. As we were only given a last week a branch finally to go the end of our 38's after 10 five years of pushing for it.

Yes we still hold raffles when we can and we do go to public events to raffle a tin to buy things like water as we don't drink the orange sludge that comes out of the taps

I am hoping that the review of the SFEC will produce a document that looks after remote communities whose back up is nearly fifty minutes away.