27 August 2019

Huntly Volunteer Fire Brigade can continue to help their community thanks in part to funding from Waikato District Council’s Wellbeing Trust Fund.

The Trust considers funding each year and provides much-needed money for capital projects throughout the Waikato district. Applicants must be able to demonstrate broad community support for the project.

Huntly Volunteer Fire Brigade applied to the Wellbeing Trust Fund this year and received $20,000. This money will go towards replacing the brigade’s support vehicle, which is 20 years old. The support vehicle is used by the brigade to attend medical callouts, towing the rescue boat, attending vehicle accidents and rescue calls. It is also used to transport the brigade for trainings.

Waikato District Council Community Development Advisor Lianne Van Den Bemd says the Wellbeing Trust Fund, which is managed by Council, is proud to do its bit in the community. “These community groups do so much for the Waikato district. Being able to support them financially means we’re working towards Council’s vision of creating liveable, thriving and connected communities.”

The Huntly Volunteer Fire Brigade has been serving the Huntly community since 1940 and has 28 operational volunteer firefighters who are on call 24/7 for their community.

The brigade operates two fire appliances, one support vehicle, one water tanker and rescue boat and responds to around 250-300 incidents annually. The brigade are called to a variety of emergencies including structure fires, motor vehicle accidents, CPR/medical assistance, rural fires, water rescues, weather related events, hazardous substance incidents and alarm activations.

Huntly Volunteer Fire Brigade Chief Fire Officer Craig Bush said securing funding from the Wellbeing Trust to the tune of $20,000 has helped the brigade significantly. “We’ve been able to upgrade our current support vehicle to something that is more modern and fit-for-purpose. We’re now able to continue supporting our community in its time of need. Having equipment such as a new support vehicle will ensure we can continue to be there for our community well into the future. We appreciate the level of funding the Wellbeing Trust and Council granted towards this project.”

Huntly Volunteer Fire Brigade also received $26,700 from The Lion Foundation, $15,000 from Genesis Energy and $5,000 from the Huntly Lions Club for the support vehicle.

ENDS

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