Volunteer rural fire fighters to be honoured

Hastings volunteer rural fire fighters will be recognised at an awards ceremony next week.

The Forest and Rural Fire Association of New Zealand will present long service medals to 43 members who have each contributed between three and 40 years service to the organisation. Special awards go to Joe Simmons from Maraekakaho who will receive a 40 year service medal while Hylton McDermott from Maraetotara will receive a 25 year service medal.

Four people will each receive a 10 year bar to the International Year of the Volunteer medal they received in 2001, while another 104 people will receive a Year of the Volunteer medal.

Hastings Deputy Mayor Cynthia Bowers will make the opening address. She says “People from all walks of life become volunteers and that commitment is much more than just being available during an emergency. There are meetings and training courses to attend and they have to be available to answer a call at a moment’s notice.”

“We don’t have to think back very far to recall the amazing work done by our volunteers during the coastal flooding of Hawke’s Bay in late April, 2011. The volunteers were quickly on the job, assisting in the evacuation of residents as the water rose around their homes,” Mrs Bowers says.

“These are the people who are on the ground, making sure everyone is safe in times of emergency and working to control fires which break out in our rural areas. We owe an enormous debt of gratitude to these people, and it is fitting that we honour them with service medals.”

The Rural Fire and Volunteer Service medals will be presented at a ceremony to be held on Wednesday May 16th 2012 in the Assembly Room of the Hawke’s Bay Opera House starting at 5.30pm.