The Australian Fire Service Medal (AFSM) was awarded to two Forest Fire Management Victoria (FFMVic) personnel with more than 65 years of combined service as part of this year’s Australia Day honours.
The AFSM is awarded for distinguished service by a member of an Australian fire service.
Kathy Gosby and Steve Grant were awarded the medal for their work during some of the state’s worst emergencies, including fires, floods and the COVID-19 response.
Ms Gosby has worked across the state, most recently in the Grampians region as regional agency commander, incident controller and planning officer, and is available for deployment in these roles across the state.
Ms Gosby was the first woman to achieve Level 3 Incident Controller accreditation within Victoria’s emergency management agencies, is relied on for her honest and open assessments of situations and is trusted to provide practical solutions.
A role model to women in emergency management, Ms Gosby continues to support and advocate for all staff to develop themselves through their service in emergency roles.
Mr Grant has held several roles in emergency management during his time at FFMVic, including operational firefighter, air attack supervisor, Level 3 Incident Controller, Hume regional controller and state agency commander.
Mr Grant has made a significant contribution as an operational firefighter and has managed some of the most devastating fires that Victoria has faced. Regularly sharing his operational knowledge with the younger cohort at FFMVic, Mr Grant has helped to educate firefighters into becoming incident controllers, providing them with a wealth of knowledge and practical experience.
Mr Grant also played a key role in developing award-winning online training that ensured incident controllers could continue vital training during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Chief fire officer Chris Hardman said the two recipients were worthy of the honours given to them.
“With more than 65 years’ service between them, Kathy and Steve are highly regarded by their colleagues and their service to the community is extremely valued,” he said.
“I want to congratulate Kathy and Steve on being recognised with the highest fire service medal in the country – it is well deserved and we’re incredibly proud of them.”