Pemberton volunteer emergency services to host open day to raise funds for new vehicles and accommodation

Emergency service crews in Pemberton will be joining together to host an open day this weekend to raise funds for the St John sub centre. The emergency services open day will be held at Memorial Park on Brockman Street on Saturday, with the Volunteer Fire and Rescue Service, WA Police, Pemberton and Northcliffe St John volunteers and State Emergency Service all participating in demonstrations from 10am to 2pm. Pemberton sub centre chair Pauline Williams said the day was a change from the ambulance service’s previous event. “We usually do an open day, but it was our decision to approach the other emergency services involved,” she said. “Chatting with the other crews, everyone’s low on volunteers and they’re eager for a bit of fun.” Ms Williams said the open day was intended to bring some extra exposure to the area’s emergency services. “Hopefully we can have a look at what recruitment can take place,” she said. The Pemberton sub centre is currently raising funds to buy a new van and provide accommodation in the hopes of bringing more volunteers to the region. Ms Williams said there would be several activities at the event for families to watch. “The SES will do some skill demonstrations and advise people on how to be winter-ready, while the fire services will do some fire-based demos, including fire extinguisher demonstrations,” she said. “Given we’re all emergency services, we have to be ready to make a quick escape.” Other activities at the open day include depot tours, first aid and colouring competitions, a bouncy castle, an ice-cream truck and raffles.