ALMOST five years after battling the most devastating bushfires in Australian history, a Swan Hill firefighter has been recognised for his exceptional service.
Murray Rohde, a firefighter of 30 years with the Department of Environment and Primary Industries, was awarded the National Emergency Medal in Melbourne last Thursday.
From basic firefighter to crew leader, Mr Rohde held several roles in the month from February 7, 2009, including on the fire-front of the Kilmore East-Murrindindi complex.
“The fire behaviour was severe and there was a lot happening — a lot of decisions had to be made on the run…”
The complex was the combination of the Kilmore East and Murrindindi blazes and the largest of many fires burning on Black Saturday, killing 159 people and destroying 1800 homes and more than 330,000 hectares of land.
“They were fairly horrific conditions,” Mr Rhode said.
“The fire behaviour was severe and there was a lot happening — a lot of decisions had to be made on the run.”
Mr Rohde said while he had been involved in major fire events in 2003 and 2006, they were “nothing quite like Black Saturday”.
Member for Swan Hill Peter Walsh congratulated Mr Rohde on his exceptional service, saying the 2009 fires would live on in memory for their “savagery”.
“This medal is a reminder of the ongoing commitment to response and recovery that forest firefighters and emergency team personnel play each year,” he said.
“It is an opportunity to recognise the exceptional service of our emergency personnel and incident management teams who worked countless hours during one of Victoria’s worst natural disasters”.
Mr Rohde is one of 1000 DEPI and supporting agency workers who have or will receive the National Emergency Medal for their service during the 2009 fires.
More than 4400 CFA volunteers are to be awarded also.
