Crows Nest – home of the big, yellow truck

Fire and Emergency Services Minister Craig Crawford today visited the Darling Downs to meet the people on the frontline of making Queensland’s fire trucks. 

Mr Crawford visited Quik Corp in Crows Nest, where most of the trucks used by the State’s Fire and Emergency Services have been designed and built. 

“The Palaszczuk Government is committed to supporting companies such as Quik Corp because by supporting Queensland-based companies we are supporting jobs for Queenslanders,” Mr Crawford said. 

“More than 20 people who live in the Crows Nest area work with the company and they, in turn, re-invest in their own community every time they drop in for a beer at the pub or head into town for an evening meal. 

“Crows Nest residents used to make their livings out of felling timber and now one of the town’s main employers builds the equipment that puts out fires, many of which are in bushland.” 

Quik Corp Crows Nest branch manager Mal Assim welcomed the Minister to the workshop and said it was an honour to be able to contribute to the statewide efforts to keep Queenslanders safe. 

“Most of my team are from the Crows Nest area. Nearly all of them are volunteers with the Rural Fire Brigade and one is an auxiliary firefighter with our Fire and Rescue Service. 

“When they get a call to go out on a job, we let them go, and they give us feedback as well when they come back.” 

Mr Assim said the bulk of the materials used to construct the fire trucks came from Toowoomba, further contributing to the region’s economy.  

He said that between the Crows Nest operations and those of the company’s main office at Warana on the Sunshine Coast, they would build 114 fire trucks for the Rural Fire Service this financial year alone.

 “Over the years we’ve built hundreds of vehicles for use throughout Queensland,” he said. 

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