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Local CFS quick to respond
ABOVE: Brigade Training Officer Steve Scarr with the prestigious award. LEFT: Local CFS attended a recent rollover.
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he Roxby Downs Country Fire Service continues to provide a high standard of local service, attending three call-outs on one day recently.
The 32 member team has also achieved high recognition on a state level, recently being awarded the CFS Chief of South Australia’s Award for Training Excellence. Brigade Captain Brett Atkins said the recent callouts all occurred on Monday, August 5. The first at 8am related to an alarm at the Olympic Dam Village Kitchen. At 4.50 am the same day a campervan rolled over 25 kilometres south of Roxby Downs. Two people were injured in the incident. Shortly after at 6pm a call came through from a private address to help a child who had fingers jammed in a household door. A team also attended the double road train rollover at 2.15am on Thursday, August 8 and were at that scene for 12 hours. Mr Atkins said the incidents added to a busy year for the local brigade which had attended 10 call outs already this financial year, and 25 since January. He said the brigade continued to be well-supported locally, with two more members Brad Perkins and Michelle Whelan recently qualifying at a two-day course at Woomera, along with others from Coober Pedy, Woomera, and Andamooka brigades. The recent award gave merit to the high standard of training and capability of local members, Mr Atkins said. “Basically to get that the brigade has a set number of requirements that we need to meet. “We have to have enough people trained in these different steps, and we met that requirement and that’s what got us the award,” Mr Atkins said. The prerequisites included training in things like Hazmat, Breathing Apparatus training, Communication, First aid, Suppress Wildfire, and burn over drills training, Mr Atkins said. At the recent AGM Lee Iles was appointed new Cadet Coordinator and will lead the brigades 10 cadets, and Matt Rowney and Jared Symons were appointed new senior fire fighters. All other office bearers have remained the same.
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Big name secret at 25 year bash he date has been set for Roxby Downs and Olympic Dam’s 25th anniversary celebrations for Sunday, October 27, 2013.
A committee consisting of Roxby Downs Council, BHP Billiton and local community representatives has been hard at work planning the event, which will begin around midday and finish in the early evening. “Following a fantastic response to our survey we have a clear picture of how the community wants to celebrate the occasion, and we’re now putting all of the key elements into place,” a committee spokesperson said. “The BHP Billiton Olympic Dam Service Awards are on the same weekend – over the Friday and Saturday nights – so this was a great opportunity to keep the celebrations happening all weekend.” In response to the survey, live entertainment was shown as one of the top priorities and there’s some very exciting news in this area. “We are thrilled to have secured one of Australia’s best-known performers to kick off our event,” the committee member said. “We’re keeping their name under wraps for now but we’re very confident they will be very well received and an amazing way to get the celebrations started on the Sunday.” To keep everyone updated, a Facebook page www. facebook.com/roxbycelebrates has been created. Locals can also log onto the Roxby Stories page – www. facebook.com/RoxbyDownsStories – to stay in touch with this amazing community project. Page 4 -- Wednesday, August 21, 2013
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