HISTORY OF
THE BRIGADE.

With a fascinating history spanning back almost 90 years, the Montrose Fire Brigade has been, and continues to be, a pillar in the Montrose Community.

HISTORY.

The Montrose Fire Brigade has a fascinating history going back almost 90 years to its formation after a public meeting in 1938.

Over the years members of the Montrose Fire Brigade have demonstrated extraordinary dedication to serving the local community while contributing many innovative ideas and even their own inventions for the betterment of the brigade. The training received and the equipment in use today is a far cry from that provided in the early years of the brigade, but its pedigree is clear.

Situated in one of Australia's most fire-prone areas at the foot of Mount Dandenong, Montrose has always been at risk from Bushfires. After a particularly bad season in 1932 and again in 1938, a public meeting was held on March 29 th of that year with the intent of forming a local ‘Bush Fire Brigade’.

Thirty-eight people attended this initial meeting, and the Montrose Fire Brigade was formed. A constitution was soon drafted, boundaries agreed, and a membership fee of £1 per member was imposed. It was also agreed to use a gong for assembling the brigade and the church bell for raising a general alarm.

On the 9th of November The Montrose Bush Fire Brigade was registered as a Class F Brigade in the Central Region.

Elected personnel were:

Alf Milne (Captain)
S Foxwell (1st Lt)
George Richards (2nd Lt)
J. Hepburn (3rd Lt)
Alf Pollard (4th Lt)
Louis Ajani (5th Lt)
Alec Turner (Equipment Officer)

Montrose did not escape the fires that devastated Victoria the following year. Conditions had been ideal for fires with high temperatures up to 43 o c and strong northerly winds. The 1939 fires started near Trevallyn Rd then crossed to Burley's Hill. An article reprinted in the Lilydale Express Centenary Supplement described it:

After the 1939 fires the brigade received numerous letters of thanks from various residents for saving their homes and a community night was organised for fund raising to help victims. The proceeds were sent to particularly needy cases in Warrandyte and Wonga Park.

“The (Montrose Fire) Brigade, under Captain Alf Milne, was severely hampered by lack of equipment and did an amazingly good job in the circumstances. The following day, fires were reported throughout the state, and Victoria braced herself for a tragedy of alarming proportions. The extent of those fires is now legend and the death toll of seventy-one throughout the state bears witness to the ferocity of the flames. Few in the region will ever forget the sheer size and force of the fires, which wiped sawmilling towns such as Matlock completely off the map.”

The event that dominated the start of the sixties was undoubtedly the devastating bushfire's of 1962. It started at The Basin on Sunday the 15th of January and spread quickly, racing around the mountain towards Montrose and Kalorama. Fanned by a strong wind the heat of the fire became so intense that it raced downhill, a behaviour unusual in fires. In Montrose a heavy pall of smoke obscured the sun for numerous days while cinders and partly burnt leaves fell in the bay side suburbs of Melbourne.

View of mountain from garden of Jean Adams - January 1962

Burnt homes - Browns Rd/Old Coach Rd area

Ted Adams, now Captain, had a problem the magnitude of which had not occurred before. There was precious little equipment, a few trained members and a mass of volunteers – all willing, but neither trained or equipped. It was his task to organise the fire fighting effort. He spent the first 36 hours continuously on duty, training volunteers on the job and organising resources. In Melbourne, the radio stations were calling for more volunteers and men were brought up in buses.

At the time the only fire-fighting vehicle the Brigade operated was an ex-Allied Works truck that they had picked up at Wesburn. Ted Adams spent countless hours working on it, installing a tank and a little pump on the back. The water tank was eventually painted silver, apparently so it could be seen when they were fighting fires during the night. Not surprisingly the truck spent more time at Ted's place getting fixed up than it did at the fire station.

The lack of equipment was made worse by the fact the Brigade was in the process of changing radio frequencies and there was a mix-up in radio communications. As a consequence what little fire fighting equipment the brigade did have was not always put to best use. It was a wake up call for the brigade and the beginning of some more communications improvements.

The Duckett family gateway Old Coach Rd after January 1962 fires

The fires claimed approximately 72 houses. After the fires, a very-well attended public meeting was held to assess what improvements could be made. A committee was then formed and a report was published. 140 new members joined the brigade. Over 1000 pounds was donated and invested for the purchase of future equipment.

During these testing times community spirit brought together some much-needed assistance. There were no street directories and maps of the area were scarce, so Jean Adams drew up the first Brigade map with assistance from a photographer from The Herald. This map was then placed inside the logbook that was kept in the fire truck. Kevin Beatty, the secretary at the time, undertook a huge mapping project for the region as well as for the Brigades. He made very useful maps that showed water points and access roads, invaluable when fighting fires in unfamiliar territory.

About this time Ted Adams ‘acquired' a siren from a police motorbike, which was put up in the pine tree at the back of his house for the purpose of calling out fire fighters to incidents.

A few dedicated members were also developing other innovative new equipment. Jack Verity contributed a highly effective fire hose washer using an old Coke Cola cooler and a washing machine, while Ted Adams developed the ‘Flame Thrower' used for burning off using a converted knapsack. Fuel reduction burns had become a commonplace activity of the brigade by this time.

Montrose Rural Fire Brigade Area

Jack Kernahan also participated with his fire safety ideas. One example was the use of a bottle of lemonade as an aid to putting out a stove fire. Another time Jack developed a prototype of a fire suit made of reflective silver material. To test it the Brigade lit a big bonfire while Jack put on his suit and walked as close as he could to it. He nearly suffocated as the glue he had used gave off fumes. But he had the right idea, and today heat resistant suits are a commonplace item of Personal Protective Equipment in many brigades.

CFA issued Bedford Small Town Tanker

In 1963 the brigade acquired its first Country Fire Authority issued vehicle, a Bedford Small Town Tanker unit to supplement the old Ford the brigade had. To accommodate the new vehicle the station was doubled in size in 1966. In 1969 the brigade realised its investments made earlier in the decade which, along with further donations, permitted the purchase of a 600-gallon tanker.

By the late sixties fire fighting in the state had become a much more organised and regulated activity under the auspices of the Country Fire Authority. Training was organised on a regional basis and the Lilydale Fire Brigade Group ran training courses covering rural, residential and industrial fire fighting. A major contributor to these activities and training committee member was Jack Verity of the Montrose Fire Brigade.

The early days of the brigade were still lean however, and by the outbreak of the 2nd world war; only 9 members remained at Montrose, with Frank Rafferty as Secretary. Fire-fighting equipment was very rudimentary and included such items as wet bags, green branches, shovels and beaters. In 1940 the brigade acquired 6 knapsacks to add to this armoury.

During 1943 the brigade purchased its first major piece of fire-fighting equipment - a Furphy. This was an agricultural water tanker mounted on skids so that it could be carried on any available vehicle.

Furphy

Times were relatively quiet during the war but the brigade was still active in the community. During 1944 the Brigade organised picnics for members and their families, hiring buses to places like Mordialloc, Frankston, and Seaford. This was paid for by proceeds from carting water for people in the local community.

In 1944 the brigade began looking for a site for a station. A tender by Fred Emery quoted Thirty Pounds fifteen shillings for “brickwork four and a half inch jointed on the outside, bagged on the inside - a garage measuring 24 feet by 20' feet by 10' feet high, including excavation and concreting”. In 1945 the Lilydale council approved the construction of the building at the rear of the Montrose public hall.

1944 also saw the acquisition of the brigades' first vehicle - a run-down ex-allied (army) works council truck that was built up by Ted Adams and members to become what was believed to be the first powered tanker in the Shire of Lilydale.

First Montrose Tanker

In 1946 a new Brigade Management Team was elected, with George Richards as Captain, Ted Adams as 1st Lieutenant, Arthur W. Gibson as 2nd Lieutenant, Bert Weeks as Foreman, Hughie Armstrong as Apparatus Officer and S. Anderson Smith as Secretary.

In the following years the Montrose Fire Brigade, in conjunction with Lilydale and Wonga Park Fire Brigades and the Lilydale Police assisted in the development of the use of radio for emergency communications. Using ex-disposal FX-6 radios a number of search and rescue operations at the time proved their worth. These early radios had such good performance that, when used at night, could make contact with Noumea in the Pacific.

Base Radio

The Brigade's first Base Station was at Ted and Jean Adam's place, using the call sign VL3 JW2 with Jean as the Base operator. The radio used can still be seen on display at the station. Ted Adams and John Plant from Lilydale were recognised as the early pioneers of radio in the region.

In 1972, due to the growth of industry in the area the Montrose Brigade applied to extend its rural charter and become an ‘urban' brigade. Due to the enhanced risk of industrial incidents in the area a van for carrying specialised extinguisher servicing equipment for factories was purchased. In 1974 increased residential and industrial development saw the formation of the Montrose Urban Brigade. Recognition of these additional urban responsibilities provided the brigade with improved fire fighting equipment thereby enhancing their fire fighting capabilities.

Over the years the donations provided by the Montrose community had been soundly invested and in 1974 the brigade was able to buy an International fire truck from these funds. This tanker had a capacity of 600 gallons (2,800 litres) and was maintained for the brigade by the Country Fire Authority.

This purchase finally precipitated the need for a larger and more modern station premises. A number of sites were considered, including the present scout hall. Eventually the current site was found by Jack Earney, and by arrangement it was purchased by the Shire of Lilydale who then leased it to the Country Fire Authority for 90 years.

In August 1976 the brigade held it's inaugural annual dinner dance function. Unfortunately the evening was interrupted by a bushfire that had started in the area and had burnt out 10 acres of land. However the Mt Evelyn Fire Brigade came to the rescue and attacked the fire allowing the Montrose brigade to enjoy their evening. This is a prime example of how brigades in the area had come to provide mutual support to each other in times of need, enhancing the effectiveness and availability of resources across the region.

In 1984, with a now highly efficient and well-trained brigade using modern equipment, the current station was opened. The building was funded by the Country Fire Authority at a cost of around $300,000 while the brigade funded the furniture and fittings. Completed at the end of August the station was built to the latest design to cater for the future needs of the area. It accommodates four fire-fighting vehicles and includes a meeting room, kitchen, office and watch room facilities. The grounds are fully landscaped with an area at the rear to allow training to occur. The end product of this investment is an attractive, high quality amenity. To this day it still offers the brigade an efficient and comfortable premises to work in, with a high profile image within the community. The premises are used extensively for meetings and training. The station came as a welcome relief to the crowded, outlived Leith Road fire station built in 1946.

PREVIOUS CAPTAINS.

Stuart McCall

2003 to 2015

Stuart led the Brigade as Captain for twelve years including twenty-two years serving on the management team. Stuart’s leadership steered the brigade for over a decade sacrificing thousands of hours of his own personal time managing the Fire Brigade. Stuart’s leadership has steered the brigade to becoming a high profile organisation within the Montrose Community. His ability to engage the greater community has given the brigade the chance to assist in ownership of their own personal safety and emergency preparation. Stuart has a passion for other members’ health and wellbeing, and has always been there to lend an ear when individuals are in need.

HISTORY OF
THE BRIGADE.

HISTORY.

PREVIOUS CAPTAINS.

Stuart McCall

2003 to 2015

JOIN THE BRIGADE.

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HISTORY OF THE BRIGADE.

HISTORY.

PREVIOUS CAPTAINS.

Stuart McCall

2003 to 2015

JOIN THE BRIGADE.

Our Community Partners

CONTACT

HELP

LINKS

HISTORY OF
THE BRIGADE.