South Australia Fire Fighters MemorialPrint Page 
The memorial wall and garden commemorate Volunteer Fire Fighters who were killed while defending the communities in country South Australia.
In April 2017, a plaque was unveiled honouring the volunteer firefighters who were killed in April 1958 in the Wandilo Forest Fire.
On Saturday, April 9, 2022, a plaque commemorating firefighter Louise Hincks who was killed when fighting a fire was unveiled. The 44-year-old South Australian mother was fatally wounded when a burning tree branch fell on her at the Coles Bushfire near Lucindale on January 21,2022.
The state's first memorial to honour volunteer firefighters who have lost their lives in the line of duty has been officially opened in the south-east town of Naracoorte.
Sixteen volunteer firefighters from across the state have been remembered on the memorial wall, their deaths in service spanning the last 45 years, including three firefighters who died on Ash Wednesday.
On Wednesday morning, the Minister for Emergency Services Peter Malinauskas dedicated the memorial, saying it put into sharp focus the dangers faced by emergency service volunteers every day.
"People who serve our community as volunteers in the emergency services sector don't get paid, they're not looking for recognition or adulation," he said. "They're simply doing it because they want to help out a fellow member of the community, nothing more and nothing less," he said. "When you really take the time to stop and think about what that actually means, it is an incredibly moving concept. I truly believe that there is something intrinsically Australian about the work our volunteers do."
Mr Malinauskas paid special tribute to Naracoorte's Rex Hall and his committee of volunteers who had been working on getting the memorial up and running — the first stage of a long-term project which will see a volunteer firefighters museum also on the site in coming years.
It was a proud day for Mr Hall, himself a volunteer firefighter for over 40 years, to see the tribute opened after 14 years of hard work. "I think it's somewhere people can pay their respects, not just families, but everyone in general," Mr Hall said. "It's a place for reflection."
ABC South East SA, 4 May 2016.
Location
| Address: | 50 Kingston Avenue, Naracoorte, 5271 |
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| State: | SA |
| Area: | AUS |
| GPS Coordinates: | Lat: -36.958077 Long: 140.730422 Note: GPS Coordinates are approximate. |
Details
| Monument Type: | Monument |
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| Monument Theme: | Culture |
| Sub-Theme: | Community |
Dedication
| Actual Monument Dedication Date: | Wednesday 4th May, 2016 |
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Plaque :
In memory of those firefighters who have given their lives so courageously whilst fighting fires in country South Australia.
Their ultimate sacrifice for the safety of others can never be forgotten.
[ Names ]
Plaque :
In memory of those members of the Country Fire Service who gave their lives in the call of duty for South Australia
[ Names ]
Honour Roll
Plaque :
SA Volunteer Fire Fighters Museum Inc.
SA Fire Fighters Memorial officially opened by the Minister for Emergency Services Hon Peter Malinauskas MLC on the 4th May 2016
Plaque :
Forestry SA
Wandilo Forest Fire
In memory of the Woods and Forestry Department firefighters who lost their lives battling the Wandilo Forest Fire on Saturday 5 April 1958.
[ Names ]
Using lessons learnt from this tragedy, major improvements have been made to fire equipment, training, communications and inter-agency cooperation.
Their terrible loss will never be forgotten.
