It’s a scene that is played out across the country each and every weekend – 4WDers contributing to the greater community in times of need. Whether it be shifting tonnes of sandbags to help those affected by floods, towing gear out of the paths of devastating bushfires, or even accessing rugged terrain to assist in the search and rescue of those who have come to grief, 4WDers are often the unsung heroes when disaster strikes everyday Aussies.

We all know that Australia has had its fair share of disasters lately, with the floods in Queensland and Victoria, Tropical Cyclone Yasi, and of course the terrible bushfires that our mates in and around the High Country of Victoria dealt with back in 2009. But what a lot of folk don’t know is that without the efforts of 4WDers and their rigs, the rebuilding process would not be as successful as it has been.

Down in Victoria, the team from Four Wheel Drive Victoria have established what they are calling a Regional Response Group, which consists of volunteers from the many 4WD clubs in the state. They donate their time to go and help those in regional areas that have been affected by the floods and fires that have hammered these regional areas over the last couple of years. Even now, more than two years after the headlines that surrounded the Marysville and Kinglake areas disappeared from our newspapers, 4WD Victoria’s Regional Response Group are still helping those affected by those terrible events of 2009.

More recently, the Pyrenees shire of Victoria was also inundated by horrific floodwaters, but as it was around the same time that 75% of Queensland was under water, it didn’t get the press coverage that it otherwise would have. Peter Townsend from the Idlers 4WD Club has led a group of hardy souls who have helped a lot of the local farmers get back on their feet by carrying out some of the more labour intensive tasks that need to be done. These include erecting fences that were destroyed and collecting debris the floodwaters left behind and piling it up for burning off.

One of the farmers in question wrote a letter to the Idlers club expressing his family’s gratitude, and in it were a couple of very moving statements. The farmer said, “We cannot explain how it is in our heart, when we drive around the farm and see those fences restored and fence lines clean, and recall the hot days that you all worked in”, he went on to say.

“The care, concern and comforting warmth of personality that you all shared has been an immeasurable strength to deal with what would have been virtually unachievable on our own.”

It makes you wonder, what would happen to all of those who benefit from all of the good work 4WDers do, if the regulating agencies and government ministers were to have their way each time they try to legislate us out of existence, doesn’t it?

HAVE YOUR SAY HAVE YOU OR YOUR 4WD CLUB HELPED OUT IN TIMES OF NEED? WE’D LOVE TO HEAR YOUR STORY! JUMP ON THE 4WD ACTION FORUM AND TAKE A LOOK AT THE 4WDS IN EMERGENCIES THREAD IN THE 4WD CHAT SECTION.
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WORDS BY RICK O'BRIEN, PHOTOGRAPHY BY MATT FEHLBERG, LEWIS COLLINS & PETER TOWNSEND