News

Emergency services from Moira Shire tackle mock collision

By Brynne Timewell

Oct 8, 2026

CFA volunteers quickly thinking of the scene of a three-vehicle mock collision. Photo by Moira Shire Council

CFA and SES members from Moira Shire were among more than 100 participants across District 22 who attended a multi-hazard mock mass casualty at Wunghnu on Sunday, October 4.

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The staged three-vehicle collision provided emergency service personnel with hands-on experience as a disaster unfolded in real time right on their doorstep.

Deputy group officer and volunteer Vern Fettke emphasised the importance of these training scenarios, as the frequency of these accidents had doubled over the past eight years.

“It’s actually getting worse, there’s probably one or two a week,” Mr Fettke said.

“The purpose was to educate our volunteers how to best deal with these sorts of circumstances.”

SES, CFA, Ambulance Victoria, Victoria Police and Moira Shire Council were all involved.

“Moira Shire were amazing and helped us out with funding for lunch, blocking the roads and everything like that,” Mr Fettke said.

Actors from the Nathalia Theatre Group attended the scene to simulate ‘casualties’ in the scenario where a truck and two cars collided, spilling hazardous materials over the road.

To add to the chaos, a ‘non-verbal autistic boy’ ran from the scene.

Participants had to act in real-time to come up with a solution, with each brigade deployed based on proximity and time of a real event.

“We’re usually the first responders on the scene, so our people have to do a lot of problem solving early on to get the most appropriate agency there as quick as possible,” Mr Fettke said.

CFA volunteers complete routinely in-house training each week at their local brigade, this forms a once-off annual training focusing on an important issue.

The mock exercise also allowed for inter-agency relationship building between the District 22 branches.