Sixty-four new volunteers have joined the ACT State Emergency Service (ACTSES) after a graduation ceremony at Thoroughbred Park.
Welcoming the new recruits, Minister for Police and Emergency Services, Mick Gentleman said they had completed 15 weeks of training that covered responding to incidents involving floods and storms and providing support and assistance to other emergency service organisations.
“During training, the recruit volunteers developed their skills in storm water damage remediation, land-based floodwater rescue, and safety and first aid,” Mr Gentleman said.
“The graduating volunteers will be undertaking roles as community educators, storm and flood operators, and providing incident management support.”
He said that of the 283 expressions of interest to join the volunteers, the 64 who were selected took part in the five-month recruit college.
He said their graduation brought the total number of ACTSES volunteers to 314.
“I am especially proud to be welcoming more women into the ACTSES,” Mr Gentleman said.
“ACT Emergency Services Agency (ESA) has been actively promoting career opportunities for females as part of the ESA Women in Emergency Services Strategy, and I am very excited to say 46 per cent of the graduates are women.”
He noted that the 64 graduates were diverse in ethnicity, gender, age, language and culture.
“The volunteer workforce is a true reflection of the community that they support,” Mr Gentleman said.
