Firefighter all the way- Tom Watkins enjoys being a firefighter. 60174

By Mara Pattison-Sowden
TOM Watkins was the youngest member of the Little Yarra CFA, until his brother joined up.
Now 19, Tom began as a junior volunteer with the brigade when he was 13 years old, and hasn’t looked back.
“I always wanted to be a firefighter,” he said.
“I sort of enjoy running one way while everyone else is running the other.”
Tom began training when he was 16 so he was able to attend jobs, and now has a position of responsibility as third lieutenant.
“I started turning out after a year of training, and my first job was a car accident,” he said.
“I don’t remember much – there was so much running through my head at the time.”
Tom said he had been excited and nervous, but has since been able to take charge in a competent way.
“I like the leadership, the whole experience,” he said.
One of Tom’s first jobs in charge was a crash in June last year, where a bus carrying 15 people ran off Little Yarra Road, injuring four passengers.
“I pretty much had to run that job and it was pretty hectic,” he said.
“I was delegating jobs and making sure everyone was where they should have been, and working with the SES, and the police and paramedics.”
Tom said the most bizarre call for help via pager was a bird stuck up a tree.
“I think it was injured and they needed help getting it down to safety,” he said.
A pager can mean any number of incidents – fires, car accidents or fallen trees, but Tom said the role of a volunteer was flexible and people turned out when they could. “At the end of the day, it’s a volunteer job, and you can’t be there every time,” he said.
The advantage he has over other volunteers is his location to the station – the Gladysdale resident lives two-minutes up the road and is self-employed as a painter.
He also works in Healesville part-time and receives calls for the Badger Creek brigade.
“When I’m home, I’m usually the first to get here and start preparing,” he said.
Tom went out on a strike team to Healesville during the Black Saturday bushfires, and spent five hours helping people and fighting fires on Long Gully Road.
He will be going for his medium rigid truck licence and needs the backing of his captain before he is competent to drive for an emergency call out.
“The job is never the same when the pager goes off,” he said.
“I’m always learning new things, meeting new people.”
Upper Yarra CFA brigades will be present at Seville IGA on 26 February, Warburton’s Up and Running event on 27 February and an open day at Yellingbo fire station on 27 February to inform residents how they can take an active role in their local brigade.
Find out more and have any questions answered from local recruitment CFA fire brigades.
Contacts: Warburton – Tony 0408 758 808, Wesburn/Millgrove – Paul 0419 361 952, Little Yarra (Gladysdale and Powelltown) – Les 0421 272 352, Yarra Junction, – Barry 0418 368 514, Yellingbo- Neil 0405 149 435 and Seville- Steve 0447 538 795.