WOW Day is celebrated annually during National Volunteer Week and provides an opportunity to recognise the highly trained volunteers behind the orange uniforms who dedicate their time, skills and energy to helping keep communities safe.
People are encouraged to show their support this WOW Day by wearing a splash of orange and sharing a thank you message on social media using #ThankYouSES.
SES volunteers support people during storms, floods, rescues and other emergencies 24 hours a day, 365 days a year and are among the state’s most relied upon emergency responders.
From flood and storm response to road crash rescue and search operations, SES volunteers undertake nationally accredited training to ensure they have the capability to respond when communities need them.
In the past 12 months alone, SES volunteers have responded to more than 33,000 requests for assistance across the state, including 17,000 downed tree incidents, 7000 flood and building damage callouts and 2300 road crash rescues.
VICSES chief officer operations Alistair Drayton said WOW Day gave the community a chance to pause and say a heartfelt thank you.
“Our volunteers are highly trained, nationally accredited and deeply committed to helping others, often during the most difficult moments in people’s lives,” he said.
“Behind every orange uniform is someone who has chosen to serve their community, often balancing volunteering alongside work, family and other commitments.”
Cobram SES Unit section leader for community engagement and resilience Helen Boler said it had been a “busy year” for the Cobram SES Unit.
“We had almost 100 requests for assistance in our community,” she said.
“That includes around 50 for trees down, almost 20 for road crash rescue and more than 15 for assisting other partner agencies in emergency response.
“We’ve also dedicated almost 650 hours to emergency response so far this year.”
Mrs Boler said they were always looking for more volunteers and there was a diverse range of roles, ranging from admin to emergency response.
“Aside from our emergency response we engage with community at local events from the Cobram Show to St Joseph’s School Fete,” she said.
For more information about volunteering visit: ses.vic.gov.au/join-us.
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