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Solomons
mechanics fight fire with spanners
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Mechanics
from the Force Support Squadron Workshop in the Solomon Islands
get to work on restoring a local fire truck.
Photo by Capt Andrew Bird, 1JPAU
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From
Capt Andrew Bird in Honiara
THE sound of tools and rattle guns signals the start of another day
for the Force Support Squadron (FSS) Workshop “spanners”.
Sunday is normally set aside as a day of rest, but not for these soldiers
– in the middle of their workshop floor is their challenge.
At the start of their rotation, the FSS workshop was approached by
the personnel of the local Solomon Island Fire Service and asked if
it could help repair Honiara’s only fire truck which lay idle
in an old corrugated shed.
The ASM, WO2 Rick Campey, and his spanners are now giving the “old
girl” the once over. The truck had apparently been donated to
the Royal Solomon Island Police Service a few years ago by the Australian
Country Fire Authority.
It was a job that had consumed all the team members’ Sundays
and some of their spare cash.
Two months on and the fire truck is being reborn, but a lot of work
still lies ahead.
The look on the ASM’s face sometimes signals whether the spanners
have bitten off more than they can chew, but through perseverance
they continue and hopes are high.
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