General News
17 January, 2026
Stawell Fire Brigade set for 2026
AFTER attending 193 callouts in 2025, the same amount as the previous year, 2026 is a big year for Stawell Fire Brigade, not only receiving funding for a Ford Command Control Vehicle, but hosting the CFA/VFBV State Firefighter Championships in March. Over the last week, however, the Fire Brigade sent out approximately 25 firefighters to help with the Skipton/Stoneleigh and Natimuk fires.
Last Friday, the Stawell Group, featuring Stawell, Halls Gap, Glenorchy, Dadswells Bridge, Marnoo, Wallaloo, Wallaloo West and Joel Joel, sent out five trucks and one command vehicle as part of a Pumper Strike Team. They got deployed to Skipton for asset protection.
Stawell Firefighter Jai Smith highlighted the work they did.
“It wasn’t a predetermined team, and we were asked if we could help and what we could put together, and we went out to Skipton for asset protection,” he said.
“We set up around the hospital and nursing home in Skipton, and fortunately, the fire didn’t come too close.
“We had a day and night shift at the Stoneleigh/Skipton area, and on Monday, we went up to Natimuk for approximately 12 hours with a command group, featuring five trucks, and helped up there.”
Last year was a huge year for Stawell Fire Brigade volunteers, as it also saw the introduction of Fire Medical Response as a capability for the brigade, which saw them assisting Ambulance Victoria with six calls in Stawell.
Stawell also attended 16 community events and raised over $53,000 in the Royal Children's Hospital Appeal. All this and more is carried out by the brigade’s volunteers who go above and beyond to serve Stawell and its surrounds.
The breakdown of the incidents from 2025 is as follows with a 100% response rate: 64 Fires/Explosions, 22 MVA/Rescues, 12 Hazardous Conditions, 54 False Alarms, 35 other incidents and six Fire Medical Responses.
Stawell has a truck that is four years old that can hold 4000 litres, and their older vehicle is 35 years old and is a stand-in tanker for the fire season and will be auctioned off following the season.
2026 is set to be a big year for Stawell, receiving a FCV (Ford Command Vehicle).
The vehicle is in the build phase, and the brigade hope to take delivery this time next year.
Stawell Fire Brigade captain Mal Nicholson said it’s big for the town.
“It’s a good addition because we will also be using the vehicle for fire medical response, which we have about ten members that are currently qualified,” he said.
“We back up ambulances on a lot of jobs around the town, and the vehicle will be handy.”
Also in 2026, Stawell will be hosting the CFA/VFBV State Firefighter Championships, a massive coup for the town.
The junior championships will be on Saturday, 21 and Sunday, 22 March, and the senior championships on Saturday, 28 and Sunday, 29 March at North Park.
Jai Smith said that while Stawell won’t have a team competing, it’s still massive for the town as it brings out fire brigades all across Victoria.
“It has been held in Maroopna the last two years, and every two years it gets swapped around, and you have to meet a certain category, and we met it with two football ovals in town, and we have it for the next two years,” Smith said.
“When the senior championships are on, we will be having a torchlight procession in town, which includes a big march, and we will have local committees involved in that, and we are hoping to engage primary schools.
“It will bring a lot of people into the town and the community, and we have done a lot of work over the last few years, and will be putting in a lot more hard work into it.”