Oliver Lees
SES Sunbury was kept busy last week, with four rescue operations over three days.
At 7.30pm last Tuesday, SES Sunbury was called to Bicentennial Park to assist Victoria Police in supporting a woman who had fallen and injured her leg.
“It was pitch black, and people weren’t exactly sure where she was,” SES commander Jarrod Bell said, who attended the rescue effort.
Mr Bell said the woman, who was out for a walk with her three school-aged children, had taken a fall in a wooded area away from any road.
“The kids went and tried to get some help [for their mum], but it was the end of the day and curfew was about to kick in, so there weren’t many people out and about,” he said.
“They were finally able to contact a family friend who made a call through to VicPol, who then asked for SES to be activated.
“We responded quickly when we found out she had been in considerable pain for over an hour.”
Mr Bell said SES Sunbury crew members along with two off-duty paramedics helped the woman get to hospital for treatment on her ankle.
This call out was the bookend of a busy three days for the unit, which included three other rescue call outs.
SES Sunbury is currently seeking community donations to continue its work.
Mr Bell said before the pandemic, about one third of the unit’s funding would come through in-person fundraising, but that avenue has been stifled over the past 18 months.
“Usually when we’re doing our tin rattle collections, we’re stationed at intersections and we would see thousands of cars in a day,” Cr Bell said.
“We understand it’s a tough time, but maybe even if people can’t support monetarily they can share the message and get it across their networks.”
To donate, visit: bit.ly/3F4AAKj
