General News
19 March, 2026
Ararat juniors prepare for state firefighter championships
JUNIOR members from the Country Fire Authority brigade in Ararat are preparing to compete in the CFA VFBV State Firefighter Championships at Stawell’s North Park Recreation Reserve on March 21–22.
The Ararat brigade will send four junior teams to the championships, marking a strong return for the local brigade in the single, double and four-man competition. Junior leader Dan Blight said it was a significant milestone for the group. “It is a big deal, this is the first time they've sent a team of four in quite a while,” he said, with the last team of four being just four years ago. Brigade member Rob Keith, who has been helping train the teams, estimates the brigade has not fielded a senior competition team for around seven years.
Mr Blight’s son Beau has competed in the championships for the past three years and said the junior program plays an important role in developing the brigade’s future members. “I think it’s exciting because we have a new young team,” Mr Blight said. “The juniors are realistically the future of the brigade. They are the ones that go through the junior program then step up into the senior brigade. There are a lot of people within the brigade that were juniors themselves.”
Although the teams have not been training together for long, Mr Blight said they would spend the coming week refining their skills ahead of the event.
Mr Blight hopes in the future more kids will think about joining up with the junior program as it offers an alternative activity for young people who may not be drawn to traditional sports. “It’s not sport based as much, so it’s not that team sport like football or cricket for kids that aren’t particularly interested in doing a lot of sport activities,” he said. “This is a good alternative for them. They can learn some really valuable skills, part of being a firefighter as well as some activity,” Mr Blight said.
For more information about joining the junior brigade, visit the Country Fire Authority website or speak with the local Ararat CFA brigade.
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