THE outpouring of public support for volunteer firefighters has reached unprecedented levels according to a 20-year veteran of the Country Fire Service (CFS).
Fresh from a deployment fighting the fierce blaze that continues to rage on Kangaroo Island, Kingsley CFS deputy group officer Roger Balboka has been amazed by the community’s gratitude.
From the tooting horns of passing vehicles to the applause in the airport, he could not recall a time where public appreciation for volunteers had been higher.
“When you are parked on the side of the road with some trucks and people go past cheering, which was consistent from here to the time we got to the island, it’s pretty incredible,” he said.
“I actually have not seen that in my 20 years where we have had that level of acknowledgement from the public in relation to the effort that has been put in and it gives you the drive to keep doing it.”
Mr Babolka was deployed to the island with 18 volunteers from across Region 5 and multiple trucks to provide support on the fireground.
Having visited the island for a holiday in the past, he was astounded by the amount of devastation, with the fireground spanning across half the island.
“We are talking over 200,000 hectares which has been impacted by the fire and the island is only about 440,000 hectares in size,” he said.
“Knowing what it was like before to what it is now and to see the reserves pretty much all gone, rural properties destroyed and infrastructure impacted, it was pretty devastating.”
Mr Babolka said there would have been around 600 personnel – both volunteers and paid staff – working on the island while they were there.
“You throw on top of that the armed forces, which was really good to see and we worked pretty closely with those guys,” he said.
“It was a good additional resource to have floating around and I know it was well-received by people on the island.”
The deployed firefighters faced intense fire conditions on the island, with winds ramping up and changing direction constantly one evening.
“The intensity of some of the fires was pretty high and we were tasked to evacuate some areas where you are required to head down roadways with fire either side of you,” Mr Babolka said.
“You rely on your training and the equipment you have got to deal with that sort of stuff.
“It was a challenging few days, it was hard work, but you come off the island feeling a great deal of satisfaction achieving what you have.”
Despite feeling a sense of pride, Mr Babolka said the sheer devastation he witnessed – including wildlife strewn across the island – would stick with him forever.
“The amount of dead wildlife, it was just constant – kangaroos, wallabies and even koalas – and it was just a consistent reminder of the impact this fire has had,” Mr Babolka said.
“Even when working on the fireground, there was still wildlife running around, which clearly had injuries from the fire and it was challenging to witness.
“It’s something you had to see to understand.”
Mr Babolka admired the community spirit of the residents on the island and how forthcoming they were with the volunteers despite all they had been through.
“They were very pleased to see us there and they were continually thanking us for being part of the exercise, which gives you the incentive to keep doing it,” he said.
“Because there were times there where things were not very pleasant, but then you see a farmer or someone who has had a tough couple of weeks and you are able to help them and it makes it worth it.”
