Female firefighters from across the state came to Cape Clear on the weekend for a women's burn day to master the art of roadside burning.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
or signup to continue reading
Despite the inclement weather, about 75 women from 30 brigades from as far afield as Albury and Portland took part in the second annual female firefighters training day.
Wet and windy conditions meant the fires could not be ignited on the weekend, but about a dozen of the attendees returned to Cape Clear on Tuesday to take part in roadside burns along Derwent Jacks Rd.
"There's no training out there for them and they need this sort of support," said the weekend's organiser, Cape Clear CFA captain Michael Rowe.
There were no blokes allowed, apart from the instructors, to give the women the opportunity to bond, share stories and try their hands at some of the jobs traditionally taken up by male CFA volunteers.
On the weekend, the women honed their skills on the trucks, pumps and hoses with most taking the chance to get behind the wheel of the fire trucks.
"Some of the young ladies have been in the fire brigade for five years and never been turned out or not even been on the truck.
"I found out who they were in the morning, and when we had a call out to a lightning strike those ladies were the first ones I sent."
Some of the women had never driven a manual car before, but most had mastered the fire trucks and 4WD vehicles on the Cape Clear oval by the weekend's end.
"I told them to just grasp the opportunities given to them and get out there and have a drive of it with a fully qualified driving instructor," he said.
Mr Rowe held the first Cape Clear women's burn day last year to teach women how to do roadside burns. Cape Clear is prolific in its roadside burning compared to some other brigades.
"The average brigade burns about 2km of roadside a year if lucky. If you take the average from the 36 brigades that actually do roadside burns, they average about 12km. We average about 70km and have already burned 40km this year," he said.
"We set up a bit of a program last year for the women and it worked really well for us. This year we've had brigades from all over the state come and learn from us."
Mr Rowe said women still faced some discrimination within the CFA, and he just wanted to make sure they got the training they deserved.
"I care about the volunteers and the community, because without volunteers and the community the CFA is stuffed," he said.
The weekend still ran despite the weather and the fact Mr Rowe and the Cape Clear CFA had fought the Bunkers Hill bushfire in to the early hours of Saturday morning.
Have you signed up to The Courier's daily newsletter and breaking news emails? You can register below and make sure you are up to date with everything that's happening in Ballarat.
