Danielle McKay at Griffith Fire and Rescue Station. Photo: Oliver Jacques.
Griffith’s first ever female Fire and Rescue Station captain Danielle McKay became a reluctant celebrity last month when she took to Facebook to politely respond to complaints about fire truck sirens being too loud in the early morning.
“Matt (the driver of the fire truck) will not only be in trouble with the brigade if he doesn’t use his lights and sirens, he can end up being charged if he has an accident and wasn’t using them,” she wrote on the Griffith Community Noticeboard Facebook page, among further explanation.
The post was liked 1,500 times and shared by almost 500 Facebook users, with Ms McKay receiving widespread praise from the public for a clever, measured response that didn’t name or shame complainants.
“I never expected the post to go viral, I’m not someone who likes attention … I just wanted to explain the law,” she said.
The firie captain took the opportunity when asked by Region to explain some other things NSW Fire and Rescue are trying to educate the public on.
“We sometimes have issues with motorists not getting out of the way of fire trucks,” she said.
“It’s important for cars to move aside when it’s safe to do so. Even if you just move as much as you can to the left.”
She also said parents should teach their kids how to dial triple zero in an emergency.
“We still get people who think they have to call 999 or 911 [the emergency call numbers in New Zealand and the US],” she said.
But the main safety drive from NSW Fire and Rescue at the moment is the push to have smoke alarms installed and tested in all homes.
“About 45 per cent of residential house fire call-outs are houses where the smoke alarm is not working or not there. It’s essential to have one installed and checked regularly,” she said.
“People think they’ll be able to smell smoke in their sleep. You can’t.
“You also get people taking the battery out if their cooking sets the alarm off. But if you do you’re putting yourself at risk.”
From Saturday 3 September Griffith Fire and Rescue will be performing home fire safety checks. Residents are encouraged to contact the station if they need one.
All firefighters at the Griffith station have other full-time jobs, including Ms McKay. This makes them extremely busy as they respond to an average of more than 500 call-outs per year. But the boss wouldn’t have it any other way.
“The only regret people have when they become a firie is that they didn’t do it sooner … you get to do something different each day,” she said. “We are a close-knit team and really look after each other.”
Ms McKay was the only woman in the team when she was recruited to the Griffith station in 2014, before becoming the first female deputy in 2019 and the first female captain in 2020. She said she’d never had a problem with sexism.
“Honestly, the previous captain would never have tolerated it … I would love to see more females here,” she said. “Diversity brings a lot to a station.”
More information on Fire and Rescue recruitment, volunteering, smoke alarms and safety tips can be found on the NSW Fire and Rescue website.
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