VICTORIA’S battles against bushfire have long been a familiar story, from Black Friday in 1939 to Black Saturday in 2009.
Behind the scenes, Barry Marsden and the equipment development team at the North Altona fire cache have remodelled the way we fight fires.
“On the news, you see fires going and you see fire trucks and aircraft, but to know what goes on in the background to get to that stage, to be able to fight fires, is another story,” Mr Marsden says.
The Seabrook resident, 68, has been appointed a Member (AM) of the Order of Australia in the Queen’s Birthday honours list for his work in the emergency services sector, developing innovative firefighting equipment and technology.
“Things have changed,” Mr Marsden says.
“On Ash Wednesday [in 1983], everything was manual. Common pumps were basic, firefighters would wear a pair of overalls and various types of boots, whereas today helmets are heat-resistant, we wear neck flaps, goggles and respirators, trucks have spray protection systems, better fire-line hoses and electronic water gauges, and vehicles can be tracked.”
For 44 years, pioneering new methods of mixing chemicals for tankers or fire-bombers and improving equipment for ignition systems has been Mr Marsden’s day job.
He says receiving the Queen’s Birthday honour was overwhelming. “It’s incredible to see that we’ve made a difference enough for people to recognise that and recommend you for the medal,” he says.
“It’s not until you stop and look at it and say, ‘my God, we’ve really made a difference here; we’ve come a long way’.”
