Volunteers give up Christmas holidays to fight Grampians blaze

For the better part of six days, the SES volunteer gave up his holidays to find himself at the heart of the operation battling recent wildfires in the Grampians.

Based in the Horsham Incident Control Centre (ICC), Mitch’s tasks involved anything from securing accommodation for incoming support teams, sharing maps and shift plans, to ensuring front-line firefighters received their regular meals.

Mitch worked a 12-hour shift each day.

Delivering dinner to exhausted firefighters was an operation, Mitch said, which often took at least four hours.

He and two others — from Seymour and Kilmore — would buckle up, drive to base camp in Ararat, pick up dozens of meals, then spend the next few hours dropping the meals off to fire crews in Halls Gap, Pomonal and Moyston.

The small towns were the scenes of some of the fiercest firefighting. And crews were often exhausted — but grateful nonetheless.

“You’re all there for one purpose,” Mitch said.

“Even when you go into (where) the fire crews (are) and the firefighters are exhausted and starving, they still say hello and are happy to see you.”

But danger was never far away.

One day before Christmas, a fierce bank of winds swept across from South Australia, threatening to intensify the already-deadly blaze.

At the ICC, a red flag warning was issued, hours before it was initially forecast to arrive.

There was some panic, but for just a short time.

Mitch recalled how the following hours went by in a blur.

“The warning came out, and everybody hit their desks. Everything just happened,” Mitch said.

Fortunately, Mitch and the other volunteers were able to handle the situation.

After making the decision to lend his support, Mitch gave his mum the heads-up that he was going to miss the family Christmas lunch.

But for Mitch’s mum, knowing how passionate her son is about helping people, the news didn’t come as much of a surprise.

“She said, ‘Good on you mate, you’ll be missed. But what you will be doing is commendable and, as I said, I’m very proud of you’,” Mitch said.

“I probably should have called her, not texted, but at least I have proof,” Mitch said, laughing.

For most of Christmas Day, Mitch found himself inside a support vehicle, unreachable by mobile phone.

However before setting out, he still made sure to pass on his wishes to his loved ones.

To raise exhausted volunteers’ spirits on Christmas Day, a Peer Support Officer from the CFA donned a Santa outfit and paid Mitch’s crew a jolly visit.

Looking back, Mitch said the days all seemed to blur together.

“It was interesting to see just how much it takes to bring it all together — how many people it takes, and, you know, the varying roles from food to accommodation to actually attacking the fire, helicopters, drone footage, the weather,” he said.

Mitch remains more dedicated than ever to helping people who need it.

“The whole reason for me joining the SES was to get out there and help people,” Mitch said.

“If I’m able to go provide resources somewhere else and be useful, then I just don’t see a negative side to that.”

Neale Cossens of Strathmerton CFA was another who gave up time with his loved ones to support emergency services in the Grampians.

Arriving on Boxing Day, Neale found himself on the front-line, battling fires as tall as the trees. He and his crew was thrown into the thick of the action when the wind changed not just once, nor twice, but four times over just a few hours.

Fortunately, Neale — who has served with the Strathmerton CFA for at least 32 years — and his strike crew were able to extricate themselves safely from the situation.