Many children dream wildly about becoming a firefighter when they’re older, many children would consider this to be their ultimate dream job. It certainly was mine for many years. Sadly, of the many that dream, few actually become firefighters later in life.
However, those who continued to dream heroic fantasies have been continuing them by helping to fight the detrimental fires that have been taking place in Australia.
Becoming a volunteer firefighter in the UK is not well-renowned. But in America and Australia volunteer training is highly extensive, requiring hard work and valiant commitment to the community. Smaller towns and villages in such places rely on volunteer firefighters to respond quickly to incidents, perform firefighting duties, and provide assistance and support to full-time paid firefighters.
Ultimately, ‘volunteering’ means there are no monetary benefits for volunteer firefighters risking their lives. However, many volunteer firefighters are honoured and proud to be able to serve and protect their local communities – which is the greatest reward of all.
Australia
The Australian wildfires are expected each year during the summer, marking it the fire season. Hot and dry conditions permit perfect conditions for a blaze to start. This season is always particularly dangerous proving more so than ever this Australian summer, the worst seen in decades. The last significant wildfires were Black Saturday 2009.
Wildfires have swept across 17.9 million acres of woodland and national parks, also effecting the largest cities Melbourne and Sydney – with the state of New South Wales being the worst struck. A total of 27 people have died and over 480 million animals.
The video above is merely human kindness towards a fellow friendly koala. Many people, like those above, have taken their own actions to help desperate wildlife.
The bushfires are continuing to blaze and challenge the brave and noble volunteer firefighters which are risking their lives to save their country. Many firefighters have been injured and lost homes and their own lives.
The New South Wales Rural Fire Service (NSW RFS) is the largest in the world, with 70,000 members across 2,002 brigades. The NSW RFS has received a spike (five times their usual amount) in applications of people wanting to become volunteer firefighters due to the ongoing events.
The Australian Prime Minister recently announced that volunteer firefighters will receive up to 6,000 Australian dollars if called out to battle blazes for more than 10 days. The Prime Minister said the compensation was necessary so that the NSW fires commissioner was able to continue to call out the volunteer force from their usual jobs – as the bushfires continue.
TeamKinetic volunteer management software
Our thoughts are with those in Australia and those being directly impacted by the fires. Please support The NSW RFS here. These horrific events should not be ignored.Â
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