General News
3 April, 2023
Dunolly Fire Brigade bring home trophies
The Dunolly Fire Brigade has proven it’s a step above the rest, bringing home six trophies from last weekend’s 2023 State Firefighter Championships, ending a 20-year dry spell for the brigade. Run by the CFA and Volunteer Fire Brigades Victori...
The Dunolly Fire Brigade has proven it’s a step above the rest, bringing home six trophies from last weekend’s 2023 State Firefighter Championships, ending a 20-year dry spell for the brigade.
Run by the CFA and Volunteer Fire Brigades Victoria (VFBV), the championships were held in Mooroopna last weekend and saw brigades compete against the clock in events like hose bowling, pump operation and drawing water from a tank.
Dunolly’s senior team took out the division three aggregate award in the rural seniors category, the first time the brigade has won an aggregate award since 2003.
Dunolly’s five-person senior team claimed the best times and subsequent trophies in the low down pump and ladder event, tanker hose reel and ladder, priming, pumping and ladder and drawing water from a tank events to see them named aggregate winner with 64 points, ahead of runner-up Mandurang with 38 points.
Dunolly Fire Brigade secretary and team member Karina Colquhoun said the swag of trophies the brigade returned with was a surprise, given Dunolly has only been competing for three years after a lengthy hiatus.
“We hadn’t been involved in competing for a number of years but we had some new recruits come in and brigade member Marty Gale jumped at the chance to get it going again,” she said.
“We’ve been running for three years now and it’s been great fun — we weren’t really expecting to do as well as we did on the weekend.
“We kind of nailed the events and got some very good times.
“The last time Dunolly actually won an aggregate trophy was in 2003, so it’s been 20 years since we’ve won it.”
Firefighting competitions are not as popular as they used to be, however fielding both a junior and senior team at the championships, Ms Colquhoun said it’s all part of building a sense of community.
“We’re a small community, there’s not much around and trying to get the younger generations to come up and get involved in the brigade is important,” she said.
“Doing the running actually helps with new firefighters and recruits, it teaches them how to use the pumps, bowl the hoses and it also teaches that CFA is a fun place to be and it’s a good community environment.
“I quite enjoy it, I like competing because you meet new people all the time and it’s a great atmosphere.
“You’re learning new things and asking questions about their brigades and how they run things, you pick up new things for your own brigade.”
Ms Colquhoun said the win meant a lot to the brigade and broader community.
“This has put a bit of a spring in the brigade’s step, it’s great,” she said.
“I’m glad that CFA and VFBV put on these kinds of events, running is a dying breed so trying to get it back up and maintain it us a challenge, but it’s so much fun to be involved in.”
