By CAM LUCADOU-WELLS
A HUMBLE fire-fighter awarded a national honour says it’s the victims who rebuild their lives after catastrophes that are the real heroes.
Captain Peter Ryan and his Narre Warren East CFA colleagues Mark Rogerson, Andrew Rogerson and Lawrie Penpraze were recently awarded National Emergency Medals for their efforts during the Black Saturday disaster in 2009.
Mr Ryan recalls leading 100 fireys in a fierce blaze in Narre Warren North for most of that cauldron-like day.
The 45-degree Celsius conditions were “horrendous”, he says.
“To have a fire-fighter on your truck vomiting from exhaustion is not uncommon.
“It’s severely stressful on your body – that amount of heat and the amount you have to do just to drag a hose for five minutes.
“After the first five minutes, you’re puffed out.”
Fanned by gales, the fire could have spread catastrophically into Upper Beaconsfield and the Dandenongs if it was left unchecked.
“We were lucky the wind stopped when it did,” Mr Ryan said.
At the time, they all knew how disastrous the fire-fronts were across the state. He could see the giant smoke plumes over Kinglake and Labertouche.
After a fire earlier that scorching morning, Mr Ryan presciently called his members to jump in a swimming pool.
When the wind picked up an hour later, the refreshed firies filed into the brigade station ready for the coming fight.
Mr Ryan – and others in his brigade – voluntarily fought a further 15 days with little respite, fronting unquelled blazes in Healesville and Kinglake and a fresh bushfire in Upwey.
“For sure I was feeling it after 16 days but the real heroes of this have been the people who have been able to re-start their lives who have lost families and houses.
“They are the ones who deserve a medal.
“No matter how tired and emotionally trying it is (fighting bushfires), there’s always someone worse off.”
Mr Ryan was proud of the national honour. It’s the highest recognition he expects to achieve but it’s not the reason he does the job.
“We do it to help out our local communities.”
