On Saturday 11 May, firefighters past and present gathered to celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Waitakere Volunteer Fire Brigade, and the story of how passionate locals harnessed hard work and a vision of service to create a state-of-the-art emergency response that today serves communities across west Auckland.
Back in May 1984, a band of brothers and sisters gathered in the Waitākere Hall and committed to build a community-focused rural fire party – not a party in the usual sense, but a group that would gather land and resources to make a difference to the local community that suffered from the delays in urban brigades reaching the small village.
Funded by door-to-door donations and contributions from Waitākere City Council and Henderson Fire Station, the Waitakere Volunteer Fire brigade started with little more than some borrowed and traded bits of gear and an old Bedford van spray painted with a flashing light.
Plagued by the van’s batteries going flat and a lack of suitable response clothing, the fire party held fast to their belief that over time things would get better.
And they did, but not without decades of commitment, perseverance, and an unwavering belief in serving and protecting the community no matter what it took.
It is thanks to these twelve founding members that today the Waitakere Volunteer Fire Brigade is a robust force of 24 dedicated volunteer firefighters, serving communities from Waitakere City and Taupaki to Helensville and Huia, at an average of 100 callouts each year.
The Waitakere Fire Station and Civil Defence facility, completed by the brigade with significant community support in 2012, is a state-of-the-art facility capable of self-sufficiency in every aspect for more than 72 hours, making it 100 percent resilient for the community and incident response.
Brigade chief, Graham McIntyre, says today the brigade’s values are even more entwined with those of the original cohort of locals that gathered in 1984 with a vision to serve and protect.
“We are a positive, inclusive team, committed to supporting and caring for each other. Upholding high standards and striving to exceed expectations. We serve our communities with courage and passion, always with pride and honesty.
“We extend and solidify the work we undertake in areas of Reduction, Readiness, Response and Recovery for our community, in a way that is resilient, resourceful, and respectful. A culture that those before us demonstrated wholeheartedly.”