Australia’s Volunteer Firefighters Named As TIME Magazine’s Heroes Of The Year

Australian volunteer firefighters have been given an honour like no other.

The brave men and women who risked their lives every day during the Black Summer bushfires have been awarded TIME Magazine's Heroes of the Year.

The publication raised a few eyebrows when it announced Joe Biden and Kamala Harris as Person of the Year, however this hero statue for Aussie firefighters can't be debated.

TIME wrote: "Australia is unusually reliant on volunteer labor...It's been this way for more than a century in Australia, with ordinary citizens working together to protect the land.

"But last year especially, their service came with incredible sacrifice: they gave up the holidays with their families, took time off work, and lost income to fight infernos that burned for several months in 2019 and early 2020. Three volunteer firefighters lost their lives."

There's no denying the people who went out everyday into those raging infernos deserve to be recognised for their sacrifice and hard work at keeping Australians safe.

People have been campaigning to make firefighters who served during the 2019-2020 season to be recognised as Australians of the Year.

They worked around the clock, under tough conditions, often exhausted beyond comprehension, and having not seen their loved ones in days or weeks. They witnessed things on a daily basis that people should never have to see even once.

While the coveted annual award has always been given to an individual for their hard work in the community, there is a precedent for it to be given to a group.

When you look at Australian of the Year's website, it says: "Groups of people or couples will not normally be eligible though in exceptional cases the selection panels reserve the right to consider such nominations."

It's fair to say that this bushfire season has been an 'exceptional case'.

The eligibility criteria also says that winners are picked based on whether the person (or in this case group) has made a significant contribution to the Australian community and nation, been an inspirational role model for the Australian community, and demonstrated excellence in their field.

Sadly, the nominations for the 2020 award closed in July last year, but we want to get the message out now for next year. People were able to nominate them for 2022 up until July this year, so we'll get to see whether the public thought they were deserving of such an honour.

Featured Image Credit: PA

Topics: Australia

Stewart Perrie

Stewart Perrie is a Trending Journalist at LADbible. His first job was as a newsreader and journalist at the award winning Sydney radio station, Macquarie Radio. He was solely responsible for the content broadcast on multiple stations across Australia when the MH17, Germanwings and AirAsia disasters unfolded. Stewart has covered the conflict in Syria for LADbible, interviewing a doctor on the front line, and has contributed to the hugely successful UOKM8 campaign.

@stewartperrie