In regional Victoria, a recent fire where a mother and four children died highlights the need to quickly implement a joint UFU  / CFA firefighter recruiting and resourcing plan.

However, the Victorian Government is sitting on its hands and this means it is putting lives at risk by not employing more paid firefighters in rapidly growing outer suburban and regional areas.

With many of the state's densely populated growth corridors protected by volunteers, the UFU says it's time the CFA acted on its commitment to employ more firefighters in key CFA localities. But the CFA and the state government are coming under pressure from the leadership of the volunteers' organisation and aren't standing up to ensure resources are allocated in a way that puts community protection first.

Premier backs failed system
The Premier John Brumby reckons the current structure works well, despite the interim findings of the Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission that the CFA failed to protect Victorians from the Black Saturday bushfires.

However, the call for a single statewide fire service is growing, the ABC reports, as concern grows around CFA volunteer response times. A recent house fire at Clifton Springs, near Geelong, saw a 13 minute response time and sadly, the fire claimed the life of a mother and four children.

Not only did this callout fail to meet the eight minute standard, but crew numbers were short at the fire scene.

Late trucks, not enough firefighters
Victorian UFU secretary Peter Marshall's assessment was scathing. "Thirteen minutes - you might as well send the coroner or alternatively the undertaker, because it's all over," he told the ABC.

The nearby Ocean Grove fire station was one of 24 locations identified by the Union and the CFA as needing paid CFA firefighters to improve the service provided by volunteers. But with no government and CFA action to recruit new firefighters, for many Victorians, the firefighting resources roll-of-the-dice remains. "You may not get a truck, if you do get a truck you haven't got enough firefighters to do the job," says Peter Marshall. "It is wrong, it is immoral and government should act upon it."