Standpipe

March 2010

G'day folks, I'm back again with some more of what's going on around the fire shed at Kariong Rural Fire Brigade. I want to share a yarn with you about what I did lately. It's about what I got up to but more over it's got to do with road safety and some great people I met.
Both I and Mrs Standpipe decided that it would be nice to do a "road trip" to Queensland; you know, to see the rellies and stuff. Off we went taking the inland route of the New England Highway and I tell you folks it's not a bad drive with fairly good roads and wonderful scenery. As we made our way out of the Hunter district I began to notice the amount of roadside crosses that marked the final destination of a lot of unfortunate drivers and they were mostly at intersections and bends in the road however a couple were on straight stretches of road. It's always sad to see these markers but there were some thought provoking ones such as a basketball hoop with a cross attached to it as well as the single water ski planted into the ground with the cross at its base. Both signifying that, this person was good at what they did be it basketball or water skiing.
Now, before you start thinking that I'm a ghoul, there's more to the yarn so stay with me. I started to think about how this could happen on a good road, well marked and sign-posted. It didn't take all that long to figure it out. You know folks, when I have my cereal and coffee in the morning I just have my sweetener and milk. These drivers I'm about to tell you about had I suspect an extra ingredient; a big heaped helping of "stupid" Take the guy in his flashy Beemer who over-took six cars on a narrow stretch of road just out of Muswellbrook. We were all doing 100 klm/ hour and he screams past well in excess with on-coming traffic…insanity in motion. He just made it in and then just took off! How about this truckie who decided to do the same in another part of the highway near Willow Tree  and found his rig didn’t have the power to complete the manoeuvre and was stuck in the on-coming lane with cars approaching. Seeing that made a few things tighten up on me I can tell you. And my personal favourite, the driver who tail-gated me so close coming down the Ben Lomond Range near Glen Innes, I could see the anguished looks on the dead bugs faces on the bonnet of his car from my rear-view mirror. There were other instances folks too numerous to mention and I'm telling you that I'm not exaggerating, it happened. Unfortunately it became all too clear folks on why the crosses appeared on the road side and it's the same old sad storey. A good piece of country road, no-one in sight and one could be tempted to put the foot down and they do. Some pay the ultimate price and get a wooden cross or some sort of marker for their troubles. Sad but true.
Anyway, as far as the trip went, I stopped at the RFS Head Quarters at Willow Tree and met Chris Hopeton L&D Officer for the district. He showed me around and from what I gathered from him, that these guys do a lot with limited resources. They have a squillion square kilometres of area to cover with three districts operating out of the one building so they're quite well versed in what they have to do. Graham Brown, a one time member of Kariong and Captain now works there as an officer but unfortunately he was out for the day. These are real country people who work hard and when they have to, get on a truck and go out and throw the wet stuff on the hot stuff. Everyone works in with each other to get the job done. As it should be.
Anyway, as far as the rest of the trip went, Mrs Standpipe took very ill at Glen Innes and spent a night as a guest of Glen Innes District Hospital. Nothing too serious I'm happy to say and we got to go home the next day. Queensland had to wait this time around. These are great people too folks. It's not nice to have to go to hospital but if you had to then you would hope that it was a place like Glen Innes. In Navy speak; they say that it's the crew that makes the ship. Well, in this case it's the staff that makes the hospital. Things are tough there too but I don't want to get political but it warmed this old firies heart to meet some genuine country folk. I can't put my finger on what it is that makes the people and the place nice folks, maybe it's in the air or the country itself but I recommend you visit if you get the chance.
               Anyway folks, that's about it for now. Remember, fire season or Bushfire Danger Period finishes at the end of March. Rural land owners still need to see their local brigade or the Fire Control Centre before any burning off is conducted. Ok, that it. We’ll catch up next issue and remember stay safe and be Firewise.