Captian Graham Fletcher puts their welcome new recruits largely down to the aftermath of bushfire in the region. 

Tarana RFS has 17 new members, which brings the rural brigade’s team up to 37. 

But, more than the increase in membership, it is the introduction of new blood that has pleased long time volunteers and Mr Fletcher. 

“The tough part has always been attracting the youth and keeping them,” he said. 

“We've had times when it’s felt like a bit of a dads army and I know for a lot of brigades they are all getting on.

"Ideally you want to keep your experience but mix it with youth coming through all the time. Otherwise, where is your next generation of captains going to come from?” 

A turning point for the Tarana brigade was the ‘Goldies’ fire on Diamond Swamp Road in December 2015. Mr Fletcher said, as the largest fire in the area since the 1950s, landholders and community members were frustrated they could not help out. 

“We had a lot of people coming to us afterwards telling us they felt useless,” he said. 

“Because if you haven’t had the basic training, you can’t go on the fire ground.”

Member services officer for Chifley RFS Liz Lewis said the average age of volunteers among the bush fire brigades in the region was in their 50s. 

“We have lots of captains in their 70s, which is great because they can train up the younger members,” she said. 

“You are never too old. There are lots of jobs to be done that don’t necessarily mean hanging onto the end of a hose.”

Once a month, on the first Sunday at 10am, the team gets together for training so they can be ready to respond when needed. 

The volunteers have become a fixture at the local farmer’s markets. You can buy a bacon and egg sandwich and pick the volunteers’ brains about anything fire related, or how you can help by joining the team. 

Funds raised at the farmers’ markets have contributed to the Tarana brigade’s efforts to turn their shed into an emergency evacuation centre if needed, complete with stove, fridge, freezers and amenities. 

They also funded the purchase of a fast-fill pump trailer, which is stationed at a remote spot in case of emergency and a thermal imaging camera to pick up hot spots and make sure a fire was completely out. 

Volunteers are always needed at Rural Fire Service brigades and Mr Fletcher reinforced the message that you don’t have to be on the fire ground to be useful. 

He said people manning radios freed up the firefighters to do their job more effectively, while people preparing food and drink were an essential part of keeping the service running. 

“I understand that volunteering can be tricky, with work and everything else,” Mr Fletcher said. 

"We were 13 days at the Goldies fire and I work for myself so I know, that’s a costly thing.”

Where once the majority of their volunteers would have come from rural properties, a change in land use around Tarana and farm incomes have seen young people switch to jobs in town or move away to pursue further education, like young member Lisa Satranek. 

Lisa was inspired by her mum and dad, who both volunteered for the service, to join. 

Fellow young member Mark Perry joined his dad David in the ranks, becoming a third generation firefighter in the Tarana brigade. 

Volunteers are called out at all hours. It’s an expected part of the job. But no one likes to be dragged out of bed at 2am because someone has simply forgotten to inform their local brigade about a controlled burn they are carrying out. 

Ms Lewis reminded landholders to inform their neighbours when they were going to burn and the RFS. The RFS number to call is 1300 258 737.