George Batt has been a member of the Marradong volunteer firefighting brigade for his entire adult life, and looks at volunteering as a way to keep local tradition alive and keep community together.
Raised on a farm in Marradong, Mr Batt and his cousin Garry helped form the Marradong brigade in 1997.
The stalwart volunteer said he learnt early about the importance of bushfire safety from older generations.
To him, being a firefighter was “part and parcel” of being a farmer — recalling the days when fire brigades were smaller and farther between, and farmers operated their own firefighting equipment to keep their properties safe.
“We relied on all the farmers, because it was only the farmers that had units in those days,” he said.
“It’s not like that these days, it’s all government funded, even the smaller brigades, so we’ve got a fire shed and a truck here in Marradong.”
A volunteer firefighter for more then six decades, Mr Batt said he had seen the industry change over time, particularly with the expanding use of technology such as mobile phones and two-way radios in firefighting operations.
“Things have changed quite a bit, and don’t know whether it’s for the better or the worse, but it’s certainly more organised and we’ve got more people on hand and better communication which is great,” he said.
“We had to think for ourselves a fair bit in those days because communication wasn’t good.
“Now, we’ll probably have a meeting to discuss how we’ll attack it, whereas in our day with farmers, they knew what they had to do and they just all raced in and did the best to put it out as quick as possible.”
He recalled many an occasion when the Marradong brigade travelled to help residents in their local area and beyond, and said one of the most resounding memories was how much volunteering brought the community together.
“In a small community, whether it’s the fire brigade or whether it’s your Lions Club, or whether it’s your football club or tennis club, you need all the volunteers you can get to look after these places,” he said.
“We were members of the Marradong fire brigade from when we left school, so we went to many lightning strikes and fires that got out of control, and the good part was in those days, being locals we knew the area so well.
“I think it’s pretty important for young people to go through the fire brigades and get that knowledge and just support the country towns they live in and their neighbours.”