Local SES volunteers tend to a home in Duncan Street, Narre Warren, on Tuesday following a night of wild winds. By Rebecca Fraser
TUESDAY night’s wild winds caused havoc in Narre Warren with the local State Emergency Service flooded by a wave of calls.
Narre Warren SES volunteers worked for more than nine hours to secure roofs and tend to fallen trees when the weather turned nasty about 7pm.
One pocket of Narre Warren, particularly residents living in Duncan Street, bore the brunt of the weather change, with roof tiles and capping flying across the street.
Narre Warren SES media officer Kanny Lee said when the winds hit, the unit had received five calls for help within three minutes, and then from there the telephone calls just kept flooding in.
The unit attended to a total of 24 jobs throughout the evening – with one call out in Berwick but the majority scattered across Narre Warren.
“All jobs involved building damage except for two which were for trees down – one landing on a fence.
“One of the worst hit streets was Duncan Street in Narre Warren. Roof tiles and capping were missing from roofs, and not just one section of the roof, but from all over the roof.
“The average time it took to tarp an area was one hour, as most houses were extensively damaged from the missing tiles.”
Ms Lee said one home had also been struck by lightning which caused extensive damage to its roof.
The unit had 20 members out on the field working and Ms Lee said many had been out all night working.
Next month, the Narre Warren SES will hold an information day to help attract more volunteers to their thriving unit.
Ms Lee said the unit was looking for members who are available during the day or evening to be part of its duty crew.
It is also keen to attract people who can assist with administration duties and fundraising.
Anyone who would like to join the crew or who wants more information can attend the information day on Saturday, 7 October at 10am.
The Narre Warren SES is at 36A Vesper Drive, Narre Warren.
