A safety upgrade purchased with money donated to the Kallista-The Patch Fire Brigade has been put to use within a week of being installed.
New LED spotlights have just been installed on one of the brigades tankers, replacing the incandescent bulbs previously used, and were instantly put to good use.
“There was a structure fire in our local area where a flue had basically set the top floor of a house on fire,” said brigade captain Peter Toender.
“It was dark, but we were able to light the scene and make the job much safer than previously.”
The improvement was so great, that the brigade is already planning to upgrade the lights on the other truck.
“We received some direct donations over the summer and our rule is that we try not to hang on to the money. We try to put it to good use for the community.”
That community-oriented spirit was also shown with another recent purchase - an alarm box for a defibrillator that the brigade had previously donated to the general store.
“The defibrillator is now in its new box outside which means its available 24/7 for people in the local area.
“Previously it was located inside the shop so you could only access it during store hours.”
The brigade thanked the public for its generous donations and support.