Community Fire Unit (CFU) volunteers were presented with a 10-year-service medal by Minister for Police and Emergency Services, Simon Corbell, at a special ceremony at the National Arboretum yesterday.
“It is my pleasure today to recognise 19 CFU volunteers with the 10-year-service award for their continued service since joining the ACT Fire & Rescue (ACTF&R) CFU program in its inception following the tragic 2003 Canberra firestorm,” Mr Corbell said.
“All CFU volunteers provide support to ACTF&R and are vital to the protection of our urban community, who live on the fringe of the bushfire interface.
“CFU trailers contain basic firefighting equipment that is used to assist volunteers in safeguarding their homes until fire services arrive during a bushfire.
“The CFU program has now grown to 1147 volunteers who receive regular training by ACTF&R in their neighbourhood as well as at the ESA Training Centre at Hume.”
Mr Corbell also publicly launched a firefighters’ webpage on the National Arboretum Canberra website designed to acknowledge the sacrifice made by firefighers across Australia.
“Fire services across the nation have developed individual honour rolls acknowledging firefighters that have passed away and now they will be linked to the one location on a page on the National Arboretum website,” Mr Corbell said.
Representatives from some of the national fire services also attended today’s ceremony and inspected a forest of Bunya Pine trees at the National Arboretum. The Bunya Pine trees stand strong, majestic and proud, which symbolises the characteristics of the firefighters the webpage honours.
(Press Release Simon Corbell)
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