‘Left us behind’: hope for Aireys fire station funds dashed

FIREFIGHTING equipment and infrastructure will become an increasing political issue ahead of November’s state election, with two promised fire stations in the Geelong region still yet to be built.

The Aireys Inlet Fire Brigade has spent 12 years waiting for a new station, despite land on the Great Ocean Road being acquired in 2018. The brigade continues to operate out of its ageing Pearse Road facility, built in the 1980s.

Brigade captain Adam Gilliver said members had hoped the region’s severe summer fire season would help push the project higher up the priority list and secure funding in Labor’s 2026–27 state budget, but the brigade was left disappointed.

“We thought that after the last fire season we might get some preferential treatment, but we didn’t get it,” he said.

Armstrong Creek is also still waiting for a promised fire station.

First announced as an election commitment in 2018, the Boundary Road station was originally expected to open in 2021, with the opening later revised to 2023.

The latest state budget has now pushed completion back to the first quarter of 2028.

Gilliver said Aireys Inlet brigade members would continue advocating behind the scenes in the lead-up to the election.

“We’re trying to get that foot in the door,” he said. “Aireys Inlet is one of the most vulnerable towns in the state.

“To have not only a new station for the safety of our members, but a new station and a safer place for our community, is first and foremost in our minds.

“Hopefully it doesn’t take a massive event for them to see that they’ve left us behind.”

Meanwhile, the United Firefighters Union has intensified its campaign against the Labor government’s Emergency Services Volunteer Fund.

Secretary Peter Marshall said the union wanted greater investment in firefighting equipment and infrastructure, as well as more transparency around how money raised through the levy was spent.

“They talk about $10 million a year over 10 years for CFA tankers. That’s 10 trucks a year, which is a drop in the ocean,” he said.

A Victorian government spokesperson defended the state’s investment in emergency services.

“We have the best-funded fire services in the country, and we continue to deliver record investment to back firefighters and keep Victorians safe,” the spokesperson said.