June 2008 Recipients
Volunteer fire fighters in Woodend will be much better equipped to respond to emergencies with the help of a Mazda Foundation grant.
The grant of $2,025.00 will be used to install GPS navigation systems in the brigade’s four vehicles to enable a more accurate method of navigation for response to fires and motor vehicle accidents in the rural community they serve.
Woodend fire fighter Wayne McLellan says that being in a rural area, the brigade covers a large amount of country roads and the GPS navigation units will allow response drivers to more accurately get to a call and free up fire fighters from map reading and prepare for the incident.
“North Canterbury is undergoing some massive residential developments at present and as such we are faced with lack of geographical knowledge of our fire district. At present when we are on the way to a 111 call, we rely on someone’s local knowledge of the streets or a map/card system to get us to the incident” he said.
Established in 1960, the Woodend Volunteer Fire Brigade responds to over 150 calls per year. The brigade works to reduce the incidence and consequences.
