Brigade hoses praise on 60-year volunteer

PORTARLINGTON’S fire brigade has farewelled one of its greats as 60-year CFA member Bob Trezise calls time on his tenure.

Bob will finally hang up the fire hose after a legendary volunteer stint, which included top-ranking leadership roles, fighting some of the region’s most dangerous blazes, spearheading community fundraising appeals and passing on invaluable experience to incoming firefighters.

Bob and his wife Val are preparing to move to sunny north Queensland, bringing to an end almost 50 years of dedication to the Portarlington community.

Bob moved to Portarlington in 1973 and wasted no time signing up to protect his new community.

He served as the local brigade’s lieutenant from 1980 to 1994 before being elected captain, for a four-year stint until 1998.

The local brigade transformed during his time as leader, including replacing its engine room floorboards with a concrete floor and receiving newer, better vehicles to combat fires.

Portarlington CFA played its role at the Ash Wednesday fires that devastated the Otway Ranges in February 1983, after which it raised $7859 for the families of volunteers that died fighting the fires.

Bob’s focus on the Portarlington CFA team remained until the end, when he said the mateship he shared with brigade members would be what he missed the most as his career ends.

“There is so much support, too much to mention,” he said.

“Blokes grow with you, you know their capability, they know yours, and you combine. You know what you’re going to do.”

Bob’s first experience with fire came early in life; his family home at Warrandyte burnt in 1939, and as a five-year-old he recalled wetting spud bags and extinguishing spot fires with a gum branch.

His family home burnt again in 1962, the same year he joined the CFA as a volunteer.

Bob oversaw a dramatic shift in technology and practices to support firefighter safety in his years of service, and the brigade said his staunch advocacy for the issue continues to underpin its ethos.

Bob remained involved with the brigade during the latter part of his career primarily as a mentor to new members, sharing decades of firefighting experience and knowledge.

Val was also no stranger to the Portarlington CFA. She was a long-time member and former president of the Portarlington brigade’s ladies auxiliary, which led fundraising and engagement activities.

Portarlington CFA thanked Bob and Val for their decades of tireless service to the community, which it said had helped save countless lives and properties in the district.