Mr BELL (Mount Gambier) (12:30): I also rise in support of the motion and want to thank the member for Waite for bringing it to this place. I think it is very important that we stop at times like this and acknowledge and thank the brave men and women who risk their lives to protect us and our communities.

Their impact obviously goes much beyond just fighting fires. They are first responders in emergencies, which comes with its own heavy toll, particularly the need for ongoing support. Once people have seen trauma and experienced it, it is very important that we have those support mechanisms behind them. Not only do they rescue people from accidents but natural disasters and other hazardous situations that people forget about. In terms of exposure to different chemicals or unknown situations, it becomes quite a dangerous occupation.

I also want to thank our local members who provide education and support. There are a lot of programs that I have been involved in around road safety and educating young people about the dangers and responsibilities of driving and what can go wrong.

My association with our local MFS dates back to when I first became a member, in fact even before that, in 2014. Our local MFS station, which was established in 1922 and began providing MFS protection for our city, was only staffed during business hours. A retained crew that operated out of hours supported the day crew.

What we were able to do was find the data that backed up a push to have our operations extended to seven days a week. What we found was that in Mount Gambier there were 20 facilities classified as major risk, including major timber mills and milling operations, which operated around the clock and housed significant amounts of flammable material, as you can imagine, being in the South-East, where there are a lot of forests and milling going on there. Together with the MFS staff, we lobbied the emergency services minister over a period of three years before successfully achieving a seven-day staffing roster, which was implemented in our station in 2019.

Since that time, our city has been diligently serviced by full-time firefighters, again backed up by retained firefighters after hours, who also work in conjunction with our voluntary Country Fire Service (CFS). This collaborative approach is essential for our regional location because we are a fair way away from any other major support network, and it is certainly a very long way from Adelaide.

It was put to the test just last month, which saw the unfortunate situation of two large house fires occurring in separate locations in Mount Gambier. On both occasions, a combination of our metropolitan and country fire services were on site within five minutes of the initial call for both fires, and they were brought under control without any damage to surrounding buildings, which is an excellent outcome. We are in a fortunate position that our MFS is supported; however, we cannot let that lead to complacency in ensuring the service is fully equipped and staffed. This is the issue that we are working on at the moment.

The Mount Gambier fire station, MFS, should be staffed by 12 full-time firefighters; however, we are currently only serviced by eight. I have had recent discussions with Minister Szakacs, as well as the new minister, Minister Cregan, and I am pleased to report that meetings are in place for next Thursday with the MFS chief. We need to get those full-time positions implemented and be proactive in our pursuits.

The other issue that does get brought to my attention from time to time is second-hand equipment. The MFS in Mount Gambier services a large region, yet seems to get the second-hand equipment from other stations around South Australia, so that is also an issue that we want to be looking at.

We must not forget that, as has been highlighted already, our firefighters are constantly placed in high-pressure and traumatic situations. It is vital that we provide them with the necessary resources, training and support to cope with the physical and emotional toll of their work. This includes access to mental health services, adequate staffing levels, up-to-date equipment, and ongoing professional development. I would like to thank the Malinauskas government for their investment in mental health support for our volunteer emergency services personnel by increasing the resources of Stress Prevention and Management.

In my electorate alone we have 15 Country Fire Service units, all staffed by volunteers. They perform a crucial role in protecting rural areas in times of emergency, particularly during the bushfire season, as well as providing assistance to the MFS when required. Again, we have seen a $2 million investment from the Malinauskas government into fire technology that supports our CFS, and I want to acknowledge that. These technologies include satellite detection, remotely operated cameras, as well as fire tower upgrades, which provide comfort and early detection, I suppose, for fires. I have seen them in operation where the camera will automatically pick up smoke in its very early phase and send an alert. Somebody who is monitoring that camera can then zoom in and, of course, then take appropriate action.

On top of that, the increased funding that the government has provided for aerial appliances—i.e. planes and the Elvis helicopter to be based in Mount Gambier during high fire danger periods—is certainly greatly appreciated, as is also the upgrade to our CFS facilities. Our Yahl CFS facility was a little tin shed that barely fit the fire truck. Due to initial work by the Marshall Liberal government, after years of lobbying by Graham Lamond and the team at Yahl CFS, it was a pleasure last year to be at the opening of the new facility, which is about four times bigger, has a smoko area or a kitchen area in there, as well as proper layouts for their equipment. That investment has been greatly appreciated.

I really want to thank Adrian Puust, who is the MFS manager, and Darren McPhail and Phil Wood, who do a great job of coordinating our local MFS facility. That was really on display in January 2022 when the Crater Lakes area of the Valley Lakes caught on fire and it took five days to bring it under control. That was where we really saw SAPOL, CFS, MFS and council all coordinating the response effort that included, obviously, road closures but also helicopters dropping water, fire bombers dropping water, CFS protecting part of the Valley Lakes area where there are homes and the MFS fighting the fire on another front.

It was a real credit to all of those involved in that incident. We saw this fantastic collaboration of all our services coming together. I want to really thank all our firefighters, who do put their lives on the line to keep our community safe. I commend the motion to the house.