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Fire Restrictions commenced Monday 26th December 2011 - 26/12/2011 As of 1am this morning, fire restrictions for across the Macedon Ranges Shire Council and Hume City Council came into force. Residents from Riddells Creek and the surrounding areas are reminded that burning off in the open air without a written permit from the council is now prohibited.
In addition to the regulations relating to burning off, there are also a number of other restrictions that apply during the coming summer months and details relating to these restrictions can be found in a copy of CFA's Can I or Can't I guide.
For more information about fire restrictions, visit the CFA website or click here to access our Fire Restrictions page.
Santa departs Riddells Creek early on Christmas Eve - 24/12/2011 Due to the rain and lightning which gripped Riddells Creek earlier this evening, unfortunately Santa had no option but to abort his annual drive around the town to hand out bags of lollies. The safety of Santa and his helpers was paramount in making the decision to call off the tour around the town shortly after 4pm this evening. Santa apologises for needing to head off earlier than expected and assures us that he looks forward to coming back again this time next year though.
Sunbury Grassfire sparks the beginning of a dangerous grassfire season - 7/12/2011 Firefighters from the Riddells Creek Fire Brigade were called upon to help battle a grassfire on Vineyard Road near Sunbury this afternoon. The fire, which started at around 4pm, soon took hold and additional fire trucks were called upon to stop the spread of the fire.
At the peak of the firefight, up to 15 fire trucks from around the local area were battling the fire. Firefighters from Sunbury, Diggers Rest, Wildwood, Clarkefield, Gisborne, Riddells Creek, Greenvale, Bulla and Toolern Vale were able to prevent any property damage and managed to contain the fire to the paddock.
Traffic on Vineyard Road was closed in both directions during the fire. A selection of photos from the fire have been included below (Click each photo to enlarge).
Bushfire Education Day 2011 - 19/11/2011 Despite the rainy weather, up to 100 residents from around the Macedon Ranges took the chance to visit Bushfire Education Day at the Riddells Creek Fire Brigade today. The day featured a number of short, bushfire safety presentations, as well as two Fire Ready meetings. The annual event is an integral part of brigades bushfire safety program to the Riddells Creek community.
A date for next years event will be chosen in the coming months and a selection of photos from the day is included below (Click each photo to enlarge).
Riddells Creek welcomes safety enhancements to its frontline fire truck - 19/11/2011 Firefighters from the Riddells Creek Fire Brigade have welcomed a number of safety modifications made to its frontline bushfire fighting appliance recently. As a part of a current statewide retrofit program, "Riddells Creek Tanker" received a number of engineering modifications to enhance firefighter safety in the event that the fire truck be trapped during a bushfire or grassfire. The changes include a water spray system which directs water along all of the external surfaces of the fire truck, including the walls, windows and tyres. Pull-down curtains designed to reflect radiant heat were fitted in the cabin and the deck area to provide further protection to firefighters. Additional panels were fitted to the fire truck to provide further heat resistance to vulnerable areas including the pump area and the battery compartment.
Riddells Creek Tanker is the frontline fire truck used for grass fires and bushfires by firefighters at the Riddells Creek Fire Brigade. This fire truck is also often called upon to fight some of Victorias larger fires including recent examples such as the 2009 Black Saturday fires at Kinglake, as well as fires at Halls Gap, Anakie and the north east alpine areas of Victoria.
A selection of photos day is included below (Click each photo to enlarge).
Car accident closes Kilmore Road - 5/10/2011 Kilmore Road was closed to traffic in both
directions this evening following a car accident involving two
vehicles near the Mt Charlie Road intersection. Firefighters from
the Riddells Creek Fire Brigade were responded to the accident
shortly after 5.30pm and Police, SES and Ambulance crews were also
in attendance. One of the drivers was transported to hospital while
the driver of the other vehicle was treated at the scene by
ambulance personnel. Kilmore Road was closed to traffic in both directions for around one hour. Police are investigating the cause of the accident.
Lounge room fire at Racecourse Road - 24/07/2011 At approximately 3.30pm this afternoon the Riddells Creek Fire Brigade were responded to a lounge room fire at an address in Racecourse Road, Riddells Creek. Fire-fighters from the Riddells Creek Fire Brigade were supported by additional fire-fighters from the Gisborne and Sunbury fire brigades.
The team of approximately 20 fire-fighters and 5 fire trucks were able to quickly bring the fire under control and limit the spread of the fire through the remainder of the building. A number of specialist fire-fighting resources were also utilised which included the use of a thermal imaging camera and a ventilation fan to remove excess smoke from the building.
An ambulance also attended the scene to treat a resident believed to have been suffering from exhaustion and anxiety. The exact cause of the fire is still under investigation but initial signs indicate that the fire may have been started by items being placed too close to a wood heater.
Today's fire should serve as a timely reminder to all residents who have heaters of any type that items such as clothing, wood and paper should be kept well clear. Residents are also urged to ensure they never leave cooking, heaters, open fires or candles unattended. Further information about this example and other home fire safety advice can be found at: www.homefiresafety.com.au
Fire destroys art room at New Gisborne Primary School - 28/05/2011 At approximately 8pm this evening, the Riddells Creek Fire Brigade were responded to a structure fire at the New Gisborne Primary School. Up to 55 firefighters and 9 fire appliances from Gisborne, Riddells Creek, Macedon and Sunbury battled the fire which extensively damaged the art room building. Firefighters carried out both internal and external attacks on the blaze and managed to bring the fire under control within about 1 hour.
Fire crews will spend the night extinguishing pockets of the fire and carrying out clean up operations. The fire is estimated to have caused at least $500,000 in damage and the cause of the fire will be investigated in the morning.
Riddells Creek Fire Brigade Recruiting Now! - 20/05/2011 The Riddells Creek Fire Brigade is about to commence its annual recruitment campaign for 2011. Have you ever thought about joining the Brigade or wondered how you could contribute to the Riddells Creek community by making a real difference? Well, getting to know a little bit more about your local fire brigade may just be the answer. The Riddells Creek Fire Brigade is made up with a membership of 100% volunteers. That means that we need people like you 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to ensure that we continue to provide this essential emergency service to Riddells Creek and its surrounding communities. The Brigade is running an information evening at the Station to gain an expression of interest from prospective operational and non-operational members on Monday 27 June 2011 at 7pm. Please contact Alex Batty on 0439 952 306 for further information or to register your interest in attending the session. We look forward to seeing you there.
New Communications officer - 12/05/2011 At the brigade April meeting the brigades membership voted for a new communications officer after the resignation of Ross Hall our previous communications officer when he moved away from the district. The elected member was Terrie Boydle who has held the position previously and will make excellent officer in this roll until the brigades general elections next year. We congratulate Terrie and Thank Ross for his years of service not only as Communications officer, but also as a member of the Riddells Creek Fire Brigade.
Members awarded for service - 30/04/2011 On
Saturday 9 April 2011 three brigade members were awarded VFBV
Certificates of Service at the Rural State Championships at Werribee
Mansion. The VFBV Certificates of Service are awarded to individuals
who have served the VFBV or the former Fire Brigade Associations for
over 20 years.
Riddells Creek raises $2008 for the Royal Childrens Hospital Good Friday Appeal - 22/04/2011 Firefighters from the Riddells Creek Fire Brigade helped to raise $2008 for today's Royal Childrens Hospital Appeal! Like every other year, volunteer firefighters from Riddells Creek were on-hand and shaking the donation tins at the front of the Riddells Creek Bakery and at the Webbers Garden Centre during the first day of their Easter plant sale.
We would like to take this chance to thank those who donated to this worthy cause. Also, it's important to note that such a success could not have been made possible without the ongoing support of the team at Webbers.
/03/2011 The end of daylight savings also marked that time of the year when residents are urged to change their smoke alarm battery as they change their clocks.
Given that daylight savings ended on Sunday 3rd April at 3am, all residents are urged to replace their smoke alarm batteries if they haven't already done so. More than 50 Australians die each year as a result of accidental house fires and most of which occur between the hours of 9pm to 6am. Working smoke detectors save many Victorian and Australian lives each year by providing residents with early warning of a fire in their home.
More information can be found at www.changeyourbattery.com.au/ or by phoning the Riddells Creek Fire Brigade on 5428 6000.
/03/2011 Firefighters from the Riddells Creek Fire Brigade joined forces this afternoon with police and ambulance personnel at a multi-vehicle car accident on Riddell Road near Campbells Road. The brigade was notified of the three-car accident shortly after 1.30pm this today. Firefighters assisted police and ambulance personnel by treating the injured occupants, managing traffic flows around the accident scene and clearing the road after the occupants had been transported to hospital. Some of the photographs taken at today's accident have been included shown below (click to enlarge).
/03/2011 Thanks to one of the wettest summers on record, Fire Restrictions for the Macedon Ranges Shire came to an end at 1am on Monday 7th March, 2011. Residents in Riddells Creek should be reminded that despite the end to the Fire Danger Period, council by-laws continue to remain in force throughout the entire year which still limit what we can and can't do as residents when it comes time to burning off. Further information can be sourced from our Fire Restrictions page.
/02/2011 If you didn’t already know, Riddells Creek Fire Brigade is completely derived of 100% volunteers. So that means that 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, thankless volunteers from the Riddells Creek community take the time to run the Brigade, train to improve their skills and respond to emergencies in order to keep the residents of Riddells Creek and surrounding areas safe. We are currently conducting a recruitment drive for operational members who might fit in to any of the following categories:
CFA members respond to a wide range of emergencies including; fire, car accidents, hazardous materials incidents, floods, search and rescue and much more. We make sure you get the appropriate nationally accredited training and skills to undertake all of the above. If you’ve been wondering how you can really make a difference in your community then being an operational response member of the Brigade may just be for you. We’re currently recruiting now. Please call Alex Batty on 0439 952 306 to register your interest or to get further information. Further information about becoming a volunteer firefighter with the CFA can be found at the CFA website.
Power lines down spark small fire - 01/02/2011 Around 1pm this afternoon during strong winds powerlines on Gap Rd were brought down just South of Barclay Place. The downed powerlines started a small grass and scrub fire which was spreading quickly. An alert driver noticed the fire, called the fire brigade and made all efforts to contain the fire. The Riddell brigade attended with two fire tankers and assisted by a fire tanker from Gisborne quickly extinguished the small fire and then dealt with the still live high voltage powerlines which were sparking on the ground and laying across residents driveways. The power company attended and unfortunately had to shut down power to a large part of Riddell whilst they repaired the lines. It is believed that a tree may have fallen across the powerlines in the strong gusty winds.
Fire Danger high to very high - 29/01/2011 The next four days are set to bring high to very high fire danger for the central fire ban district. Whilst there is a lot of green grass at the moment and despite the recent rain, there are many areas where the bush and grassland have dried out sufficiently to support fire. Residents are urged to use caution when operating machinery in these dry areas and make sure fire suppression devices are carried if required. If unsure contact the brigade or visit the Fire Restrictions section of our website for further information.
Flooding affects Riddell again - 13/01/2011 Once again parts of Riddells Creek have flooded after several days of heavy rain. Most parts of the town received over 150mm during the 4 day rain event with the peak on the evening of January 13th leading into January 14th. Homes and businesses were flooded and some roads were washed away or cut off by deep flowing water. The brigade responded to numerous calls for assistance and even had to sand bag the shed at the rear of the fire station when water began rising from storm water drains and flowing across the property.
Hardware failure takes down riddellcfa.com - 17/01/2011 Due to a hardware failure with our hosting company, our website was down for several days. We have now moved the site to a new server and will now be running regular updates again.
Santa is coming to town this Christmas Eve! - 21/12/2010 Santa will be teaming up with firefighters from the Riddells Creek Fire Brigade this Christmas Eve as he travels around in a fire truck to visit all of the children in and around Riddells Creek. Parents should be advised that this years annual Santa run will commence from 3.30pm this Friday (Christmas Eve) and is likely to conclude at approximately 6.30pm. During this time, Santa and his team of helpers will endeavour to visit all of the roads and streets within Riddells Creek. If required, further details on Santa's journey around the town can be sought by calling the fire station on 5428 6000.
Brigade takes delivery of new command & control car - 14/12/2010 The Riddells Creek Fire Brigade proudly took possession of their new command and control vehicle today. The new 2010 model, 4WD Toyota Hilux vehicle replaced the previous 2006 model which the brigade had operated for the past 4 years. The vehicle is owned by the Riddells Creek Fire Brigade, unlike the two other firefighting appliances housed at Riddells Creek which are funded owned and funded by the CFA.
The upgrade of this vehicle was only made possible through the many financial donations that the the fire brigade have received from the residents of Riddells Creek. More information about this vehicle can be found at our Appliances section.
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