Apollo Bay Fire & Rescue Brigade

Facts You Might Not Know

The brigade has responded to an impressive 96 calls so far this year with 17 callouts in November alone.

It is totally voluntary and dedicated to keeping our community safe.

Training requirements are demanding. Most members have multiple qualifications including Advanced First Aid, General Firefighter, using Breathing Apparatus (BA), Structure Fire, Road Crash Rescue and Rope Rescue - all gained in their own time.

Most members also have young families and work full time.

Over half the brigade, including our Captain, Dave Howell, are self-employed, so turning out can come at a financial cost for these members. We are also grateful to the employers who release members to attend calls.

As a Rescue Brigade (since we have no SES here), our call outs extend beyond fire-related incidents. More than 30% of our call outs are to Motor Vehicle Accidents. These can be personally challenging. We also assist the police such as recently being requested to help search Artillery Rocks for a missing fisherman. In August, on a moonless, freezing, rainy Saturday night, we helped police find a teenage scout group who’d lost their way on the Great Ocean Walk. Additionally, we assist Ambulance Victoria maintain CPR for long periods or move patients for them, sometimes from very difficult locations.

We extend our heartfelt thanks to our brigade families whose family time is often disrupted by these call outs. Next week, we have our family BBQ. We’ve included a pic of last year’s Brigade BBQ. Not all of us are there, but you get an idea of who we are.

Wishing you a safe and happy festive season from the entire Apollo Bay Fire & Rescue Brigade.

Karen Keegan, Secretary.

Note: If you’d like to join – put in an Expression of Interest on the CFA website and we’ll contact you. The more members we have – the more the load can be shared.