WA Radio Scanner Users' Group

Bigfella78 wrote:How many spare fire fighters do Fesa keep on hand?
I mean,I know they have guys ready to replace others that call in sick or have training but on a normal day do they have extra's sitting in perth station waiting to be sent out to other stations?

From my understanding they would page/sms a pool of fire fighters who are for relief crews and have them man the appliances. Otherwise they're based out at one of the stations as part of a normal crew. Will try and find out more how it works when I next see my mate who was one of these relief fire fighters but based normally in Perth.

Well on Very High and extreme fire danger days those LT's that are in perth get sent out to outstations that are in high risk areas because rather than dispatching them from perth they can be of assistance to the first arriving crews if they are already with the station responding to the fire.

The question about staff. Well the staffing numbers for the relief pool FF's (group of FF's who report to a station then sent out to cover FF's who are not at work or there right spot) depend on a few factors, How many spots are there that need to be filled due to FF's being off work sick, Guys on holidays, guys acting in different positions. Though at the moment I believe that the numbers are very high due to fact that there has been 6 FF training schools in the last 2 yrs so numbers are up, which allows for more extra LT's to be dispatched. (Not 100% sure though)

Each pump crew must have a crew of 4 guys due to safety, at the moment with a lot of guys spare at stations as there are not many reliefs they would ride in the back of a pump or an extra LT so that they are still being utillised rather than sitting around and not being used

Where are you getting all this information from, ace of spades? In 8 years, I haven't seen nor heard of spare light tankers being stationed like you say, with the exception of Perth.

You'll just have to believe me, or not believe me, I don't care. I have contacts who are perms but hey take it or leave it, but the repositioning of LT's is a rather new concept and as you said they were usually left in Perth but now they are moved. Whats wrong you believe that in 8 years your ment to know everything

midland where running a spare LT yesterday.

I always thought that they pulled two of the guys off one of the pumps in perth and put them in a LT in summer as perth LT.
I think in the past if there is a few days of Bushfires running they have put extra Firefighters in a few LT's that are sitting around the training wing and run them out of Perth fire station, But I have only heard that happening about twice in 10 years with the call signs of Perth LT2, LT3.
I know some vollie stations have had a spare LT, Kallamunda VFRS did it for a few summers.
If they are doing it with outer metro perm stations then times are changing! Pitty they dont put on a few 3.4s or at least have a few more 2.4's
I do have a very vage memory of midland having a 2.4 sitting at their station and someone commenting about it being put there for a bad spell of weather... but it was probably 7 or more years ago and a very very vage memory!
What are the call signs for the extra LT's for the perm stations, has anyone heard and do they turn them out for all calls or just scrub/grass fires?

Hey fastlane, ace of spades is 100% in what he is saying.

Check out the Appliance names on these trucks from bassendean vfrs.

http://frsvols.asn.au/wp/wp-content/upl ... deanlp.jpg

http://frsvols.asn.au/wp/wp-content/upl ... deanlt.jpg

how can they have two bassendean 2nds?

and i know for a fact that bridgetown vfrs has been given a landrover crew cab LT for summer

When you hear 'Bassendean turning out' thats the Perms and when you hear 'Bassendean 2nd' thats the vollies, so the Bassendean 2nd stickers on the Light Pump and Light Tanker are the vollie units

ahk, so how often do the vollies turn out? and do they often get stood down befere they get there?

from what I've heard...not very often, and most of the time.

They don't back up Bassendean for call outs and aren't first call for anything so don't get called very much at all, Guildford are basicly in the same boat as Bassendean 2nd but do still have their fire district so get called for a few things, realisticly they should have their Light pumps replaced with 2.4's.
Both Bassendean and Guildford have been around for a long time with Guildford being around for over 100 years so when ever talk comes up to shut them down there seems to be a bit of a wall due to the historical significance.

Guilldford will never get anything bigger then their LP unless they get a bigger station. the LP only just fits in there as it is. They also had to re-inforce the floor cause the LP broke through it.

When i was with Guildford, there was talk of them getting a new HSR but that didnt happen because of the station size.

I don't know about the positioning of LTs at outer career stations, as this didn't really happen when I was there. But on the Perth note...

During Summer they usually have 1 or 2 manned every day with loose men from Perth. However they will increase this with callback staff during larger incidents, utilising spare LTs from Workshops or Training Wing. I think I have heard/seen up to about Perth LT 8 or 9 at larger jobs.

They also do the same thing with callbacks to man Pumps - again, saw and heard up to about Perth #10, I think this was during the Neerabup campaign about 4 or 5 years ago.

The other thing you will hear is the stations with 2.4s (Joon, Mal, CV) will get a 2nd LT in place of their 2.4 at times when there isn't a spare 2.4 available.

treeny wrote:ahk, so how often do the vollies turn out? and do they often get stood down befere they get there?

6 or 7 turn outs this fire season and mostly for LT only.
Bassendean 2nd never back up bassendean hence why they are are called bassendean and not bassendean 1st.
Fesa will deciced on bassendean VFRS and guildford next year when the Basso perms move to Kiara next to the police station.
But that said Basso and guildford ave been in limbo for years now waiting on a decision from FESA.