TWO years on from the Black Summer bushfires, Southern Grampians Emergency Services volunteers, Jill Mibus and Frankie Beggs have been honoured for their contributions to the communities of Mallacoota and Corryong during the crises.

Last month, the veteran emergency services volunteers were awarded medals of service during a unit meeting at the Daisy Turner Room on Gray Street.

Ms Beggs, a Red Cross member for 50 years was first deployed to Corryong on the state’s northern border where the conditions were such that the Country Fire Authority (CFA) gave volunteers the option to stay or go before a particularly dangerous day, to which Ms Beggs said the decision was a unanimous, to stay.

When asked if being surrounded by fire was scary, Ms Beggs said she had a job to do.

“In a way but not really, we’re there to do a job and we just got on with it,” she said.

“Registering people that had lost everything – most of town had been evacuated because there was no power so there were no children around.

“It is very rewarding when you know you’re helping people.

“Some people lost everything, and you feel so sorry for them and do your best psychological first aid … we’re really well trained and the Red Cross have support, so you are debriefed.”

After her stint in Corryong, Ms Beggs was redeployed to Mallacoota along with Ms Mibus.

“The fire was out in Mallacoota and the army had been in and sanitised,” Ms Mibus said.

“It was still dangerous, still a great risk – there was asbestos in the air.

“They (the army) had removed the dead animals and painted the railings (on stairs) where the fire had been through.

“People were only just returning that day or the day before and for many of them they had lost everything.”

One challenge the women said many people faced was proving their identity without the documents usually required to do so.

They said when people sort assistance they often did not have access to bank statements or account numbers because they had left in such a rush and their documentation, any proof of who they were and what they owned had been destroyed in the blaze.

“How do you prove you live there if you have no rate notice, and the house is gone,” she said.

“We helped with psychological first aid and grant applications.

 “And found out what people needed and redirected them to those services … there were plenty of agencies we could put them onto.”

While the women both agreed they do not volunteer for the medals, Ms Mibus said it was an honour to be recognised in such a way.

“It’s very nice that the powers that be think we’ve done a good job,” she said.

 Southern Grampians Emergency Services volunteers have received high levels of training to provide psychological first aid, food and water and provide any further assistance required in an emergency.

The group is always looking for new, skilled recruits of any age who want to help humanity.