VICSES CEO Greg Leach made a visit to the regional VICSES sites last week, visiting members of the San Remo Unit with unit controller Mandy Chancellor discussing resource management, funding, and plans for future expansion to house their rise in members.
During the meeting, all participants including VICSES San Remo Unit members, assistant chief officer Cameron Rothnie, operations manager Matthew Taranto and operations officer Priscilla Grimme discussed the importance of hands-on experience and a supportive team environment in emergency response situations.
“We have 22 members at the VICSES San Remo Unit, and I am proud of their participation.” said Mandy.
“Our training is good, but were limited by space, and resources.”
They also shared challenges and highlighted the importance of community awareness and engagement, as well as the need for an extension plan – with the VICSES San Remo Unit on a current seven-year lease with members outgrowing their existing site, currently housing three vehicles in a two-bay shed off Davis Point Road.
The conversation centered around the importance of securing a suitable site for their future, as well as fast-tracking non-operational members to better support management by developing a strategic plan to grow non-operational volunteer roles in areas like community engagement, fundraising and administration and creating awareness around what the VICSES covers.
Greg shared if you look at the history of Victoria - bushfires have always been a key hazard here and the CFA are provided with more funding than VICSES; however, if you look at the damage caused by natural disasters in Victoria, the damage cost is about $2.7 billion a year and 76% of that, so, the three major hazards are the responsibility of SES.
“Road accidents, floods, trees down. Nobody recognises that it's the SES who are doing all of that,” said Mandy.
Greg also shared that if you look at what climate change is doing, for the whole of the world, but particularly here in southeast Australia, the SES trend line is going up “So the intensity, the frequency and the duration of these natural events are going up and up, so if we keep doing what we've always been doing then we're going to fail a community because that gap is going to grow, we need to be investing more into SES training and equipment,” said Greg.
“The less money that the government puts into SES requires more fundraising from volunteers and volunteers have a finite amount of time to volunteer. So, if you're spending more time fundraising, that's less time you have to do other things like responding,’ said Greg.
The SES requires financial footing, investment into training, equipment, and services to meet the needs of the community, and Mandy accentuated that the San Remo SES volunteers work well together, and their unit has high turnout numbers despite their various work schedules, so it is important to keep looking after these dedicated members.
“I will always prioritize member wellbeing and stress management, including encouraging participation in the mental health awareness course to look out for my members and prevent burn out,” said Mandy.
Mandy thanked CEO Greg Leach for taking the time to meet with members at their station and ask them all face to face what they require and what will help their unit into the future.
The VICSES San Remo Unit is responsible for San Remo and surrounds with volunteers on call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
To join VICSES, email sanremo@ses.vic.gov.au or visit 14 Davis Point Road, San Remo.
