Wednesday, 17 May 2023

 Ann-Marie HERMANS (South-Eastern Metropolitan) (09:55): Today is Wear Orange Wednesday – WOW Day. This day is in May and it is a national day of thanks for our SES workers, so I want to give a real shout-out to all of our SES workers and volunteers. In Victoria we give thanks for our thousands of hardworking State Emergency Service volunteers, who selflessly serve the Victorian community seven days a week, 24 hours a day and every day of the year responding to natural disasters like floods, storms and landslides and emergencies like roadside rescues, and we acknowledge their assistance to other great emergency services like the CFA – Country Fire Authority ‍– police and Ambulance Victoria. With thousands of dedicated volunteers and a couple of hundred committed staff in approximately 150 units across Victoria, they have been serving the community for close to 50 years. The majority of the work of Victoria’s SES has been and continues to be completed by unpaid volunteers, and these volunteers have been the backbone of the organisation. I want to thank our SES volunteers for their commitment to leading better public safety outcomes, including their rescues in the floods last year and their continual storm and road rescue operations, which I am aware have caused tremendous trauma, and they just continue to serve in this capacity. So today I along with all my Liberal colleagues and National colleagues want to acknowledge our sincere appreciation for our hardworking volunteers and paid staff in Victoria’s SES.