It is very important that we inform our readers that information provided by anonymous persons is noted and followed up where possible, but the level of support and assistance could be limited if we are unable to correspond with people who remain anonymous to the VFFA.
The privacy of our members, volunteers and whistle-blowers will always be treated as the highest priority when dealing with information provided.
This episode of 4 Corners is well worth watching.
PTSD impacts upon many of our emergency service workers. We are seeing poor performance from State Governments and insurance companies as they shrug off, dismiss and avoid dealing with these matters.
The RFSA is sitting on $9,788,262 (ref: NSW RFSA Annual Financial Report – 31 March 2015).
This article poses the question “what is the RFSA doing with all that money?” and looks at the fund raising activities of the RFSA.
There has been many occasions where the VFFA has been approached by the public with questions on fundraising activities. The VFFA has informed those people that we do not conduct telephone based fund raising therefore it must be an RFSA call centre.
When you get that phone call requesting support for Rural Brigades, how much of your money gets there?
The VFFA has received reports from numerous NSW RFS members that their personal information has been disclosed to the Rural Fire Service Association (RFSA) against their wishes.
Some recent feedback suggested that the VFFA should take a look at our Personal Protective Clothing (PPC) to see if it is suitable for our female firefighters.
Initial discussions with some of the ladies in my patch (The Monaro Team) indicated that our female firefighters like the two piece firefighting PPC. They all agreed that overalls, as used by many of the blokes (no longer available) would not be popular with the ladies.
But the question remains:
Is there more that the RFS could do to take care of their female firefighters in terms of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and PPC?
A survey of women volunteers in the South Australian Country Fire Service (CFS) was undertaken in late 2005, suggesting the following:
Review and improve the provision of personal protective clothing (including footwear) for women volunteers.
The current CFS system (2006) in which there is one universal sizing system, which in reality is a male body shape sizing system needs to be abandoned, as was done long ago in the armed forces and the police.
There should be two sizing and fitting systems for PPC, one for male body shapes and one for female body shapes.
Feel free to add a comment (below) or send us an email.
But wait there’s more… what about toilet and hygiene systems for our female firefighters? Watch this space.
In relation to the following, Section 44 fire at Warrimoo in the Blue Mountains on the 14th November 2014:
Information from the “Fires Near Me” RFS website.
Greens Rd, Warrimoo
ALERT LEVEL: Advice
LOCATION: Greens Rd, Warrimoo, NSW 2774
COUNCIL AREA: Blue Mountains
STATUS: being controlled
TYPE: Bush Fire
FIRE: Yes
SIZE: 117 ha
MAJOR FIRE UPDATE: AS AT 15 Nov 2014 18:10 Firefighters are controlling the fire at Warrimoo. The fire has burnt 120 hectares.
RESPONSIBLE AGENCY: Rural Fire Service
UPDATED: 16 Nov 2014 04:37
A VFFA member from a Hawkesbury RFS Brigade posed the following questions:
Why wasn’t the Hawkesbury RFS brigades invited to send assistance to that fire?
The Hawkesbury is a neighbouring Rural Fire District with the nearest brigade less than 30 minutes away.
The Hawkesbury was not asked despite a strike team being on standby.
Perhaps Hawkesbury didn’t offer?
There were no fires in the Hawkesbury at the time of this fire.
Yet strike teams from the Sydney area as far away as Warringah and Campbellltown and teams from the southern highlands responded, how can those distant response be justified?
Shouldn’t the nearest available brigades be responded?
Is this the most efficient use of fire fighting resources? (Sending teams from far away when a neighbouring district is available and is standing by)