Our SES holding strong

THE State Emergency Service may be on its knees across Queensland but the volunteerpowered group is still going strong in Townsville.

The Townsville Bulletin can reveal Queensland’s 45-yearold SES is haemorrhaging members across the state in the lead-up to disaster season, after 20 branches closed and 15 per cent of volunteers left in the past five years.

But northern region controller John Forde, who oversees Townsville, said there was no such problem here.

“We’ve seen no change in numbers and there’s been more inquiries in relation to volunteering,” Mr Forde said.

“We’ve had greater inquiries from different cultures and different nationalities and we’re starting to see the younger generation coming through.

“Some groups have seen an increase in numbers and overall we’ve been pretty stable over the last couple of years.

“Even in our remote areas the numbers are stabilising.”

The Townsville area is made up of 20 groups, encompassing locations including Ingham, Palm Island, Burdekin, Charters Towers and Richmond.

Mr Forde said the key to Townsville SES’S ability to stand strong while others crumbled was its connection with residents across the area. “It has a lot to do with our community engagement; we address and look after the diversities of the different volunteers, work around FIFO workers and help families be involved,” he said.

“We also keep tabs on our volunteers and how they’re doing outside of the SES.”

Senior figures in the Queensland SES say they need 7500 volunteers in the next two years — a 50 per cent increase — with the organisation no longer able to respond to major storms in rural parts of the state due to dwindling numbers.

Eight branches have closed in Mackay alone — a region frequently affected by storms, cyclones and bushfires.

Mr Forde said volunteers in Townsville would be ready to go when their southern neighbours called for help.

“We’d only go if it was a major incident, which would cause a cascade affect.

“So if we went down there some FNQ members would come down here until we’re all covered.”

Other Queensland branches have also been closed in Roma, Toowoomba, Longreach, Caloundra, Gympie and Cooktown.

It’s understood some branches are taking up to 18 months to recruit new volunteers because of blue card and training course delays, causing frustration for applicants.