Fire hero honoured at Sunshine Coast awards ceremony

A firefighter who rescued two unconscious people from a burning building on the Sunshine Coast has today (Monday) been awarded the prestigious Queensland Fire and Emergency Services (QFES) Commissioner’s Medal for Valour.

Fire and Emergency Services Minister Craig Crawford said Senior firefighter Craig Hogarth had performed “an act of exceptional bravery in hazardous circumstances where there has been a clear and significant risk to life”.

Mr Crawford said Mr Hogarth risked his own life to rescue the two occupants of the Caloundra building last August.

“Once safely outside the burning seven-storey building, he performed life-saving CPR on the two people until QAS officers arrived and transported them to hospital, where they made a full recovery,” Mr Crawford said.

“Craig Hogarth has demonstrated the highest achievements and aspirations of the Queensland Fire and Emergency Services.”

The Commissioner’s Medal for Valour was among 27 medals, clasps and meritorious awards presented to North Coast Region emergency service personnel during the Buderim ceremony.

Member for Bancroft Chris Whiting, who represented Mr Crawford at the ceremony, congratulated all the award winners, and praised their professionalism, courage and passion.

“The recipients have a wide range of skills and expertise which they bravely apply during difficult and challenging situations,” Mr Whiting said.

“They also undertake a huge amount of work behind the scenes engaging and educating the community to build their resilience.”

QFES Commissioner Katarina Carroll said she was in “awe” of the recipients.

“Our fire fighters spend many years training to develop specialist knowledge, which they use to ensure a safer working environment and deliver excellent service to the public,” Ms Carroll.

“In this job, I am always humbled when I attend ceremonies across the state to award QFES volunteers and employees for their service. They leave me in awe of their commitment to the communities they serve.

“Much of their work is unseen by the public and requires a great many hours of planning and training and this work is greatly appreciated by all of us.”

Mr Whiting also took the opportunity to officially handover a new $980,000 Scania P320 Operations Support Unit (OSU) to the Caloundra Fire and Rescue Station.

“The new specialised support vehicle will enhance emergency service capabilities, particularly supporting firefighting operations when there is a need for the use of breathing apparatus.

“The new capability is critical when emergency responders have to deal with hazardous materials or where electronic command and control is needed to manage an operational incident.

“The service QFES delivers to our communities is outstanding, and this level of professionalism is reflected in both their people and the equipment they use,” Mr Whiting said.

ENDS

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