Community rallies behind pony club during fires

VOLUNTEERS, businesses and the community helped the Ballarat Pony Club open its gates for up to 150 horses during the region’s January bushfires.

Between Wednesday 7 January and Sunday 11 January, the club and its 45 volunteers catered to livestock owners from throughout the region who required safe accommodation for their horses.

Many from within the greater Ballarat community contacted the club and offered support for its equine guests.

Local hay producer Ian Miller donated 100 bales for the horses to enjoy.

Meanwhile, members of the city’s Sikh community cooked food for those at the precinct throughout that period.

Club committee member Nina Lloyd said they opened the grounds on Total Fire Ban days for livestock owners to place their horses.

“I think for the community now that the word’s got out more and more that the facility is available in these circumstances that actually we get a lot of people come early on these catastrophic or extreme days,” she said. “They just say, ‘We’re just gonna take our horses out early and take them there so they’re safe’.”

Mrs Lloyd said it was a busy time for the precinct. She said during the fires many people pitched in to provide supplies to those coming in and out checking their horses.

“The people who were there were amazing helping each other,” Mrs Lloyd said. “People were very good about pitching in.

“Other people that had to rush off, there were other people would get their horses water, and people went into Kmart (and) bought your bucket and stuff to get water for the horses.”

She said the contribution from Mr Miller was well received.

“I got 100 bales of hay donated, brought in late on Friday night so that the people who had come in from the surrounding area, a lot of them rushed in and didn’t have time to bring feed and stuff with them or didn’t have room to bring feeds,” Mrs Lloyd said.

“It was amazing for the people that had literally got there with nothing and were pretty keen to give their horse something to eat.”

Mr Miller said he and his wife Renee just wanted to help those affected.

“I think it was great that the people could use the pony club grounds and just get their horses out early,” he said. “The last thing you want to be doing is trying to round up the pony out in the back paddock.”

A community-run organisation, the Ballarat Pony Club’s future goals are to secure funding for toilets and storage facilities for these emergency events.

For more information or to support the club, email [email protected]