General News
6 November, 2024
SES teams preparing for North West storm season
Training is being conducted from Mornington Island to Birdsville ahead of the wet season.
Senior SES personnel are preparing for the coming storm season by conducting on the ground reviews of all volunteers’ competencies this month.
From using a chainsaw to flood boat search and rescue activities and working at heights, Western Area Controller Sandi Wallison said up-to-date training was an important element in the organisation’s storm season preparations.
Ms Wallison travelled through the Gulf, from Doomadgee to Normanton this week, and will travel down to Birdsville next week.
“We ensure the competencies of our members are current to ensure they have the skills and knowledge required to help our communities in the coming months. It is an important part of our storm season preparations,” she said.
Among the first groups to receive additional training were the Mornington Island SES crews, who undertook a Road Crash Rescue Course last month.
The four-volunteer crew spent their first weekend learning the theory behind the course, which focuses on rescue scene safety procedures while assisting emergency service personnel at a road crash site, before moving onto the rubbish tip the following weekend for some practical experience working in and around car bodies.
There are currently six members of the SES on Mornington Island, with two of the group having already completed the course.