Gunning- Fish River Rural Fire Brigade awarded a Commissioner's Certificate of Commendation

The presentation was held as part of St Florians Day celebrations at RFS headquarters in Sydney earlier this month.

"The Gunning-Fish River Rural Fire Brigade is recognised for its commitment to protecting the Gunning community during a flood emergency in October 2022," the citation read.

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Called to assist the public at the Motel Gunning on October 7, the brigade found Meadow Creek was rising rapidly and threatening to inundate the motel and a residence.

The crew acted swiftly to prevent the floodwater entering the buildings, organising supplies of sand from council and gathering sandbags from village residents before starting work to fill the sandbags and transport them to the two properties.

The crews worked for six hours without break, building sandbag walls, re-directing water and setting up pumps to protect the two properties.

The crews managed multiple challenges overnight from sewer dump points flooding, a service station starting to flood and a number of homes coming under threat.

For its members' resolute commitment in working beyond expectations to protect lives and property, the Gunning-Fish River Rural Fire Brigade is the worthy recipient of a Commissioner's Certificate of Commendation, the citation read..

Upper Lachlan Shire Council CEO Alex Waldron praised the brigade for their efforts both seen and unseen and congratulated them on the recognition.

"I would like to congratulate the brigade for your award of recognition and thank you for your tireless and selfless efforts to help the community in their hour of need," Ms Waldron said.

"Volunteers are the cornerstone of our community and what makes the Upper Lachlan a great place to live."

Recipients of the award included Captain Andrew Johnson, Sam Johnson, James Kenna, Danica Cole, Doug Fraser, Martin Stewart, Kyle Ireland, Peter Johnson, Kacey-Lee Ireland, Joel Bulger and Peter Sutherland.

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