Usually, the fire brigade is more focussed on what you should do in a fire and less on how you should start one.
A medical assist turned into a bit of extra community service for the Motueka Volunteer Fire Brigade recently, leaving a Motueka pensioner “gobsmacked” after they returned later that day to stack his firewood.
Peter Neal’s daughter Sheree was visiting her father’s Motueka home last week when she took a hard fall onto the deck, injuring her arm and shoulder.
An ambulance was called, and the fire brigade came out to assist the medics get her comfortable on a stretcher.
She was taken to Nelson Hospital and, when The Guardian talked to Peter a couple of days later, she was still being monitored.
Before leaving, the volunteers checked Peter was okay and chatted about the heap of firewood sitting on his driveway.
“Then about half an hour later, I had a knock at the door,” Peter says.
There stood station officer Chris Dalziel, senior fire fighter Jess Nelipovich, qualified fire fighter Sam Rubie, and fire fighter Donald Loubser, together with Donald’s 12-year-old son Bryan, armed with wheelbarrows and ready to help.
“I just couldn’t believe it when they turned up,” says Peter, who has recently celebrated his 90th birthday.
“I was just gobsmacked.”
Chris says it was a tangible way to lighten Peter’s load and take some pressure off his situation.
They certainly achieved that, Peter reckons.
“I was thinking this was going to take me all day today and probably part of tomorrow,” he says.
Instead, it took the group only about half an hour to get the job done, but the good feelings lingered for everyone involved.
“It’s nice to come back and do something positive,” Chris summarises.
“We had some fun,” Jess adds.
“Well, I enjoyed it,” quips Peter.
The Motueka Volunteer Fire Brigade is always on the look-out for new volunteers to join the team.
Please contact chief fire officer Mike Riddell on 027 845657 for more details.
