In short:
Seven members of the Werribee Fire Brigade have received a CFA Unit Citation for Service after rescuing a resident from a burning home in February 2025. The crew spotted the fire before any Triple Zero call had been made, with their quick response credited with saving a life.
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Local Heroics Recognised
Seven members of the Werribee Fire Brigade have been recognised with a CFA Unit Citation for Service after their quick actions helped save the life of a local resident during a house fire earlier this year.
The collective honour was awarded to Sean Cross, Joshua Redman, Paul Ryan, Michael Wells, Brendon Gill, John Ryan and Cameron Ward.
In the early hours of 18 February 2025, the crew was returning to the fire station from another emergency response when they noticed a large plume of smoke and an orange glow in the distance.
Werribee Fire Brigade Captain Michael Wells said the crew quickly located the source and arrived to find a fully involved structure fire, immediately beginning firefighting operations.
“As they conducted normal fire operations, one of our firefighters Brendon Gill noticed a person within the structure during their initial search,” Michael said.
“Without hesitation he executed an extraction of the person from the window of the burning structure and gained assistance from other members.”
No Triple Zero call had been made at that stage, so the brigade requested another crew to assist.
Problem Solving Under Pressure Praised
Michael said the firefighters’ vigilance and initiative made all the difference.
“They used strong detective work to investigate what was going on as soon as they saw it and their prompt actions allowed a person to leave the scene unscathed,” Michael said.
“We would’ve been behind the eight ball otherwise waiting for someone to report it and the fire could have become more established.
“They are a reasonably young crew, but well trained and they operated well above their capability, it was fantastic. Everything they did was great.”
Michael, who attended as part of the second responding crew, also praised Incident Controller Lieutenant Josh Redman’s leadership.
Proud Moment For Proud Brigade
“The recognition came as a surprise to them, but they took it in their stride. They’re incredibly proud of belonging to CFA and to a brigade and I think it is great we acknowledge them for the work they’ve done,” Michael said.
“It was about the team coming together as one and achieving an outcome and in this case it went towards saving a life. They did everything they were trained to do, everything they were supposed to do and they did it exceptionally well.”
CFA Deputy Chief Officer Garry Cook AFSM presented the citations during the brigade’s annual awards dinner in June.
“Thanks to the vigilance and initiative of these members, a life was successfully saved,” Garry said.
“Their exemplary leadership, teamwork and discipline reflect the highest standards of the spirit of CFA and we thank them for their dedication to protecting and supporting the Victorian community.”
