Ashburton Guardian Magna est Veritas et Prævalebit. THURSDAY, JULY 23, 1935. ALLENTON FIRE BRIGADE.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume 55, Issue 241, 25 July 1935, Page 4

Ashburton Guardian Magna est Veritas et Prævalebit. THURSDAY, JULY 23, 1935. ALLENTON FIRE BRIGADE.

The report of the activities of the Allenton Fire Brigade in the first yeai of its existence will 1 be read with interest by residents of the district. Fortunately the record of its work does not concern any outbreak of magnitude, all calls except one having been to hedge or grass fires. But while residents are to be congratulated on their freedom from serious fires, they are to be congratulated aiso on possessing a body of men willing and ready to cope with any emergency. The fact that during the year the Brigade held twenty-four musters, in addition to attendances at fires, with a good average strength, shows that members are taking their responsibility seriously. This spirit is the more commendable because of the lack of a suitable room in which to meet when conditions are not favourable for practice outside, and also, it may be said, for the holding of such meetings as are necessary for the conduct oi the brigade as a unit in which members co-operate with understanding of each other. A great disability lies in the present system of alarms, which cannot be considered as anything but a makeshift pending the provision of premises adequate for the purposes of a reasonably well-equipped organisation. The matter of details need not be discussed at the moment, but it cannot be urged too strongly that to get the best possible results, it is necessary to provide proper housing of the plant and some accommodation for the roen, followed by the installation of a less cumbersome system of alarm. The recommendation by the Committee to the County Council for the purchase ot a section of land and the erection of a fire station should receive careful consideration by the authorities. There is no ca l tor heavy expenditure, but it should be borne in mind that in fire brigade matters the benefit is not measurable by what occurs but by what has been prevented. The members of the Council take a broad view of their responsibilities and in this matter they may be relied upon to act in the best interests of the district,—an important section of the large area under their jurisdiction. In the meantime the thanks of the community . are due to those men who by attention, duties have demonstrated that they are actuated by the high ideals of volunteer fire brigadesmen—a conception of community service that is more arduous than all others and at times much more dangerous.