Replacing vital emergency equipment in the aftermath of Black Saturday [18.05.2011]

The HMS Bushfires Grants Fund has awarded $22,500 to St John Ambulance Australia (Vic) Inc. to replace vital communication equipment destroyed in the 2009 Black Saturday Bushfires on Mt Stanley. While St John Ambulance Victoria was deploying volunteers to support the emergency response to the devastating Black Saturday bushfires, the organisation itself fell victim to the fires losing vital communication equipment in the destruction of the Mt Stanley Radio Base. The Mt Stanley Radio Base is used by a number of emergency service organisations and support agencies including Victoria Police and The Department of Sustainability and the Environment.

For St John’s, the Mt Stanley site provides a vital link between the St John head office in Melbourne and its site at Wodonga and supports communication across the North-East of Victoria. Whilst the replacement of the radio tower is being funded by the Wireless Institute of Australia, St John’s is responsible for replacing the UHF repeater, which it owned at the site. The UHF repeater is a special transmitting/receiving station that facilitates extended radio coverage in remote areas.

The Trust’s grant will ensure that St John Ambulance (Vic) has the capacity to support emergency service efforts in the North-East of Victoria and respond to natural disasters and emergencies in an optimal way.