Well, we have and are still enjoying a long, hot summer but winter will no doubt be upon us before we know it.  The weather has already shown signs of unrest with all the different hazards it can create.  Wild weather shunting up the east coast bought gale-force winds and plunging temperatures.  Heavy rain fell for four days in South Westland causing flood damage to all highways in the area.

So the message to take from that is, be prepared!  Check your garden – make sure there are no weak branches and old trees that could fall in case of strong winds.  Be careful when boating – don’t be caught out on your boats or while kayaking.  And remember that wind gusting over 120kmh can cause damage to roofs and power lines.

At this time of the year we like to BBQ with friends and family.  I would like to remind you of a simple Firewise behaviour: don’t leave matches and lighters lying around.  Kids are not always aware of the danger they represent so please make sure you put them away in a safe place when you’ve finished using them.

The bi-annual Firewise Programme was successfully delivered to all Year 1 & 2 children at Greenhithe Primary School on Friday 26th March.

Greenhithe Brigade members will be at the Greenhithe Primary School Fair on Sunday 28th March offering truck rides for a gold coin donation towards this School fundraising event. 

In Brigade news this month…between December 2008 and March 2009, the Fire Service introduced a new Operational Skills Maintenance system to help ensure all operational personnel maintain safe and sound operational skills.  This new approach enables us to proactively plan our training nights and quarterly exercises.  It is also a very useful tool for our training officers who can now follow at individual level, firefighters progress against agreed core operational competencies.

This month saw many Brigade members undertake courses for Fire Service advancement…congratulations to Craig Worthington, Mike Fawcett, Paul Hilton, Pinakin Patel, Paul Lagataki and Isabelle Lardeux-Gilloux who are now all Qualified Firefighters, and to Arron Brown and Scott Rees who have completed their Senior Firefighters course.  Thanks to everyone for the huge amount of time and effort that has gone into getting ready for these demanding courses.

It’s that time of the year when we start training and fundraising for the Sky Tower Challenge.  Firefighters hope to hit the half million-dollar mark with this year’s Sky Tower climb on May 22.  Firefighters started climbing Sky Tower back in 2001 as part of the public climb but in 2005 it became a stand-alone firefighters’ event, with 88 firefighters climbing raising over $17,000.  From then on the numbers have grown: 2006 (113), 2007 (156), 2008 (156), 2009 (240), 2010 (300++).  Greenhithe Volunteer Fire Brigade has been there right form the start with all members having run the tower at least once, and many others having done it many more times!!  We’ve also contributed the oldest participant (well done Rob!!), and bought back a gold and a silver medal.  But more importantly, we’ve now raised over $10,000 for the Blood and Leukaemia Foundation.  This year, with your support we hope to reach our target of $2,000. You can donate directly online at http://www.firefightersclimb.org.nz/view_group_event_profile/13 or drop a cheque to the dairy made out to the Greenhithe Volunteer Fire Brigade.

Concluding word . . . Life is like a lamp flame; it needs a little oil now and then.
Firefighter Isabelle LARDEUX-GILLOUX