SA Firefighter

Perhaps it was more than a car fire...eg threatening / started on a nearby structure..... 

Pip

Looks like they are still there......

Pip

I haven't heard anything, however, one could assume that the new stand alone rescue vehicle could be replacing any of the current stand alone rescue vehicles - which could include Waikerie, Kadina & Yank

Pip

Quote from: Pipster on April 18, 2011, 01:34:11 AM

My community wants the siren to be activated during fire danger season, for fires in the local area - which is what we do. 

My community is aware that should they hear the siren, they should go outside and look for / smell for smoke, and to check the CFS website etc for info......
Pip

So are you saying that you, as the brigade captain, have been out to the community and advertised the siren as an official means of notification when CFS paperwork states otherwise? Not meaning to stir you up, but i love the inconsistency within the CFS.

No Alex, that's not what I said...

I go out to my community, and tell them that the brigade will always set the siren off for a report of a bushfire in the local area during the fire danger season.   The siren is an early warning for the community - to get them to go outside, and have a look around, work out where the fire is in relation to their property.  It is nothing more than an early warning.  I have advised them that should they hear the siren, once they have had a look around, have a look at the CFS website / listen to the relevant radio station for warnings etc.

I have also reinforced the concept of leaving early in the event of a bushfire, not waiting until they can see / smell the smoke, and directed them to the CFS website / brochures etc to ensure they understand the concepts.   

As we are a small community, with a low turn over of properties, the brigade tries to get to all new residents to ensure they understand that they live in a high risk bushfire area, and have decided what they will do if a fire comes.

This is simply the CFS connecting with our community - something that went missing for a while across the CFS... and now, after coronial inquests in two states it has become apparent why brigades must connect with their community!

Pip

But sometimes you want the siren to go off, and other times you don't... so setting it to go off on CFSRES is not always going to suit.

Can I ask pumprescue, why is it not a simple thing to set the siren off?  Surely a page with URGMSG it will do that, and putting that on a message is not too difficult?  Or is there some issue with paging out messages...?

While it is easy to get the station & just press the button, I know in the case of my brigade, particularly during summer members go out gardening, mowing etc, and don't take their pagers with them (it prevents pagers from being chopped up by lawnmowers), but they can hear the siren...that few minutes delay for someone to get the the station to set the siren off may mean the rest of the brigade have a few minute delay before they know of an incident...

Pip

It would appear (at least from an outsider) that simply paying volunteers for their time doesn't necessarily make more people join...

Looking at various MFS retained stations in SA who were struggling for membership, the money on offer didn't appear to increase the membership. 

Simply paying people for their time (on an adhoc basis) didn't appear to be enough of an incentive for more (suitable) members to join.

So if the service is not all about money, but other, more important issues, simply paying individuals is not the answer!!

As mentioned before, encouraging employers of existing members, through compensation for particular events, to release tier members, while the employee still receives their existing wage, might mean we have the right sort of people within a service, being more likely to be released for major events.

Pip

Dunno if paying volunteers for their emergency service work would necessarily fix issues with lack of crews, however, compensating employers, to let their people go might (perhaps if members received their normal pay, which their employer would be compensated for), might assist with responses to large scale disasters..?

Pip

Some of the 14's require a LR...

And I think the 34's are around 13 tonne ish (most important thing, is they are under 15 tonne, and hence only a MR licence required)

Pip

Nope, don't remember East Torrens having one....   

Tea Tree Gully have a BBQ trailer, with an ice box.....   I think East Torrens might have grabbed it many years ago for a fire.... ?

Pip

And the bottome line for all of this is the funding.... only a certain amount of dollars given to CFS for training.....and hence we end up with the system we currently have...

If the Govt put more $$$ into training, then more people could be trained in the various specialist courses, and half of the arguments listed above would no longer count!!

Pip

I'd be the same message they sent to the MFS appliance attending the same call.....

Pip

i completely understand that many struggle when a radio is put in their hands (i personally found i put on a 'radio' voice), but there are only a handful of k codes that are really relevant to tasks the cfs face. I still believe they are useful and its not too hard to memorise a few codes

And that is the problem...only a few codes to memorise...that's easy...until you come across something that is different.... and either don't use the code, or have to go looking at your cheat sheet for them...which defeats the whole purpose of having the K codes in the first place!!

Pip

What exactly is the purpose of codes?

I notice that many of  MFS sitreps back to Adelaide fire use the relevant K codes...and then say what the code means....so it isn't shortening the message.

If you don't use codes all the time, it is very easy to forget them... numerous people are awful on the radio now..imagine them starting to talk, stop, keep the finger on the PTT button, while they look up a code for what they want......!   Plain English is much easier (although some even struggle with that!)

Police use codes  - and they are used all the time..... although when a code that is rarely used comes up, patrols are having to go to the cheat sheet to work out what it is....

From a police perspective, codes are great, as you have a large number of people on the same radio talkgroup, with different task to do.  You learn very quickly to listen for the codes that relate to your task.

On a CFS radio pretty much all of those on the radio are going to do the same thing!

I think codes have their place, but CFS is not that place!!

Pip