From the Advertiser - Tuesday 09/10/2006
CFS volunteers are refusing to drive new trucks because of safety concerns, just one week before the start of what is expected to be one of the state's worst fire danger seasons.
At least two of the trucks have been pulled off the road, and one will undergo expensive modifications.
Volunteers claim some trucks bought about two years ago are "undrivable" when loaded with firefighting equipment.
Separate sources told The Advertiser yesterday the 11 trucks in question, costing around $300,000 each, are "overweight and unsafe" when water tanks and equipment are installed on them.
The appliances have been allocated across the state but, with a heatwave expected this week, the McLaren Flat appliance is sitting in a Murray Bridge engineering yard while the Kangarilla truck is sitting in a private shed after being slapped with an internal CFS defect notice.
Arthur Tindall, CFS manager of infrastructure and logistics, said yesterday independent reports showed nothing wrong with the vehicles. Instead, further driver training was required to get them used to handling the trucks, he said.
Despite this, Mr Tindall said the CFS was undertaking extensive modifications to at least one of the trucks to "appease the volunteers" and "overcome perceived issues".
"The volunteers will say they weren't consulted but you can't consult 15,000 people," he said.
He said further driver training would be conducted.
Sources said despite complaints and concerns by CFS volunteers, those in the city headquarters "don't give a s--t" and nothing was done until volunteers would no longer drive the trucks.
CFS members say it is placing not only homes and lives at risk, but also the volunteers. There was no planning or forethought," a source said.
"The next group of appliances (purchased about six months later) are fine - it's like they realised the mistakes and fixed it on those ones.
"But with the 11, they built them, gave them to us and said 'there you are, be happy with it'," he said.
Nothing like supporting one another and working together to find a solution. Appeasing people is one thing - insulting their intelligence and their commitment is another - how quickly people forget their origins.
