Tea Tree Gully State Emergency Service

Ms BEDFORD (Florey) (15:09): We are all well aware of the tough weather conditions that our emergency services have been put through over the past couple of weeks, with the windiest winter in 30 years and a higher than average rainfall. For some members of our community, particularly those in pastoral communities, this is a most welcome relief to the drought they have faced, but it does keep the SES, the CFS and the MFS, and all other emergency services, very busy.

The call of duty and the responsibility to help others if you can are strong and special contributors to community life, no more so than the men and women who brave often appalling conditions to keep us safe in a time of need. I would like to personally thank all the members of the emergency services who volunteer to keep our communities safe, and in particular I would like to acknowledge today my local fantastic SES unit at Tea Tree Gully.

This unit is based at the Tea Tree Gully council depot at Tolley Road, St Agnes, and has recently celebrated its 50^th birthday. Led by current unit manager, Phil Tan, celebrations took place on Saturday 9 July. Unfortunately, due to calisthenics commitments, I was unable to attend but I did send my personal congratulations to Phil and all members of the unit. Minister Peter Malinauskas and the member for Newland were in attendance, as was the Mayor of Tea Tree Gully, Kevin Knight, and the federal member for Makin, Tony Zappia.

Phil Tan is the current and sixth leader of this decorated and well-respected unit and has been so since 2013. I would like to place on record the other five leaders of the Tea Tree Gully SES since 1966. Bill Brassington ran it between 1966 and 1992, an amazing 26-year contribution; Craig Stephens, 1992 to 1996; Mark Nelson in 1997; Craig Brassington, 1998 to 2010; and Andrew Woolman between 2010 and 2013.

This 47-strong unit, comprising about 40 per cent female members, is a very well-decorated unit, winning a number of state and national competitions establishing them as one of the best units in the state. This unit has won every biannual State Rescue Challenge since 1992, recently winning the 2015 event held at Brukunga in the Adelaide Hills against a number of units from all around South Australia.

The Tea Tree Gully unit has gone on to win the National Disaster Rescue Challenge, representing South Australia three times in 1994, 2001 and recently in 2011, and has been runner-up many times. This unit is a credit to the local community in the north-east and knowing we are all well protected by this undefeated state championship team and the recipients of its expertise is, I am sure, reassuring and inspiring not only to us but to all units in the SES across the state.

Over the past 50 years, this unit has helped at a number of national disasters from floods, cyclones, fires and storm damage. This unit has been deployed to Darwin, following Cyclone Tracy, assisted during the unforgettable Ash Wednesday fires, and the Port Lincoln, Pinery and Sampson Flat fires, and also the devastating Victorian fires, flood events all around the state, the Newcastle storms and, of course, most recently the storms and flooding around metropolitan Adelaide and the Hills.

In the past 24 hours alone there have been 11 callouts, one a swift water rescue of a car driven into a flooded river and another where a car was bogged because it had ignored the signs placed on the road. I have been asked by the unit to emphasise to everyone that the community should understand that if it is flooded, forget it. Obey the signs. If you put yourself in danger, you also endanger those who put themselves in harm's way to rescue you.

The SES at Tea Tree Gully and all other SES units are always looking for new members to assist and I would encourage all members, as I am sure they already do, to encourage their communities to consider joining the local unit. The Tea Tree Gully unit trains every Wednesday evening for a couple of hours and is trained to assist in search, advanced rescue, storm damage, vertical rescue, first aid, and urban search and rescue.

I would like to thank all of the members who have been part of the unit over the past 50 years for their time and effort in serving the community. I would also like to thank all of the local businesses and community groups that have given their support to the Tea Tree Gully SES. Their Bunnings sausage sizzles are legend, supported by Bruce's Meat and Poultry at Fairview Park—the best sausage maker in the world, and I say that in the face of the member for Schubert's reputation—and the great people at St Agnes Baker's Delight who also supply the Florey Bun Run for International Teachers Day every year. Café Bongiorno, Tea Tree Plaza, provide support in extreme weather events. Donations of equipment, manpower, money, and food and drink to the unit in times of need are always forthcoming from our generous community, and I also thank them.

Finally, congratulations again to Phil Tan and all the dedicated volunteers involved with the Tea Tree Gully SES over the past 50 years to reach their golden milestone. While I doubt I will ever put on the safety gear in any useful way, I am sure I look forward to being involved with them in the future, hopefully for the next 50 years or the best part thereof.