By Marcus Uhe
Volunteers at the Devon Meadows Fire Brigade are reluctant to hang pictures in their Finsbury Road Fire Station due to the presence of asbestos in the wall.
It makes conducting maintenance and running repairs more difficult than it should be, due to the complications posed to health and safety.
The station, built by members in 1946, is two separate structures merged into one. The rear of the station, which houses the brigade’s vehicles, was once the Narre Warren Fire Station, but was given to Devon Meadows some 40 years ago.
With no off-street parking available on Finsbury Road, the 32 volunteers are forced to share two parking spaces at the front of the building and four at the rear, but may be required to move their cars if there’s difficulty getting the vehicles out in an emergency situation.
Their hose rack is forced into a narrow alley at the side of the building bordering the fence and can takes weeks to properly dry a hose, due to the lack of sunlight it attracts.
And like most suburbs in the ever-expanding South East of Melbourne, land is at a premium. The station borders the Devon Meadows Scout Hall and Glover Recreation Reserve, meaning there’s little room for an upgrade or expansion at the current site.
This means that volunteers are forced to change into their breathing apparatus and protective equipment next to the fire truck while it’s running in a small enclosed space and risk inhaling fumes from the truck as the engine starts, with the clock ticking in an emergency situation to get out the door as quickly as possible.
Despite numerous applications to the CFA for funding over the years, the brigade feel they have been left behind, having been rejected on the basis that there is a lack of money and land available.
New emergency service stations in the region, such as the SES Unit coming to Cranbourne, or fire and police stations coming to Clyde, all had land acquired in the last 18 months.
Nathan Thorp, Captain of the Devon Meadows Fire Brigade, is wondering when they’ll be next.
“We are definitely forgotten about,” Mr Thorp said.
“The SES Unit coming to Cranbourne is going to be a huge help for the community and it’s going to take a lot of stress off of Narre Warren (SES Unit). Having that is going to be fantastic but it is a bit of a kick in the guts in a way.
“It’s funny how they have land and they have the money to do it and it’s like, how come we don’t? What went wrong under CFA, or how come we can’t do what they’re doing?
“Unfortunately with the amount of money we do need, there is no grant out there for us to actually go out there and build something.
“We need room to grow with the community in order to keep protecting it.”
Previous Captain Andrew Swain led the brigade for 15 years before handing the reigns to Mr Thorp.
Of particular grievance to both the previous and current captain is the creation of a five-year plan documented in 2010 that prioritised Devon Meadows CFA, but nothing came to fruition.
Mr Swain accused authorities of playing politics when it came to funding distributions.
“It’s a big pond and we’re a little fish,” he said.
“We’re in a nice safe seat and they’re not going to put any money in to this station when they might have another fire station in marginal seat; they’ll go down and give them $3 million for a station because it’s in marginal seat.
“They’re trying to win votes.”
As Captain, Mr Thorp is the one to deliver the disheartening news to the volunteers when applications get rejected.
At times, it has cost them volunteers, sick of playing the waiting game and subjecting themselves to health and safety risks.
Despite their frustrations and the hit to group morale, the members will continue to put in and weather the challenges in front of them.
“If we give up, we give up on the community,” Mr Thorp said.
“If we give up, we’re giving up on everyone that lives in Devon Meadows and surrounding areas. Even Clyde, because we are a supporting brigade to these areas, we’ll be giving up on people who don’t deserve to be given up on.”
Mr Swain added: “I’m doing it for the community because someone in the community needs us. That’s why we’re going to the job.”
A spokesperson from the CFA said the organisation is endeavouring to upgrade and replace stations across the state in as funding becomes available.
“CFA acknowledges the dedicated service of its volunteers at Devon Meadows Fire Brigade and the incredible service they provide to their local community and beyond,” the spokesperson said.
“Priorities are developed across the state taking into account district, regional and state-wide feedback and needs, including community risk profile and service delivery needs, to ensure the best outcome for Victorians.
“CFA has 1190 stations across the state, and will continue to work with the government to identify priority stations for future investment.”
