Thursday, 4 May 2023

State Emergency Service Chelsea unit

Tim RICHARDSON (Mordialloc) (10:00): Recently we officially opened the brand new Chelsea SES unit. The Andrews Labor government provided $7 million towards this redevelopment, providing modern and state-of-the-art facilities for our dedicated volunteers. Chelsea SES is the longest serving SES unit, having commenced in 1953, and provides a leading example to our emergency services families. Today the unit is home to dozens of volunteers responding to some 250 requests for assistance across our community. But the boundaries do not end at Kingston; they have answered the call across our state and across our nation numerous times.

But as critically important as new infrastructure is, it is those volunteer legends at Chelsea SES who are the beating heart and the soul of our community. I wanted to recognise unit controller Ron Fitch, who has served our community for more than 30 years, and deputy controller Phil Wall for their incredible leadership on this journey. We also commemorated wonderful volunteers who served our Chelsea SES community but sadly are no longer with us. As part of the redevelopment we opened the Graham Russell memorial meeting room alongside his wonderful family. We also honoured Natasha Drake with the opening of the Natasha Drake memorial garden with her family. Natasha was an incredible person and a highly valued member of the Chelsea SES for more than five years. We want to thank Bunnings Keysborough for donating everything to this beautiful garden, which is a beautiful and fitting tribute to Natasha Drake. They are a wonderful family at Chelsea SES unit. They have got great new facilities, but it is always the people that have made that place the best.