About Us

Searching for a missing person at Springbrook.

The Queensland State Emergency Service is a volunteer organisation that is driven by the dedication, hard work and sincere generosity of community members around the state.

The Disaster Management Act of 2003 states that the functions of the QSES are to:

• perform rescue or similar operations
• perform search operations;
• help injured persons, or to protect injured persons or property; and
• prepare the community prepare for, respond to and recover from a disaster.

What does this mean for the Somerset Region operationally?

SES here assists the police, ambulance and the fire service with road crash rescue support, traffic control, missing person searches and forensic searches.

We also assist with storm damage and flood operations.

What else does the SES do in the Somerset Region?

The SES provides assistance to community groups for things such as car parking, traffic control for fetes and first aid. As SES relies partly on fund raising to purchase equipment, we undertake rural numbering on behalf of the Somerset Regional Council.

In 2002 the Somerset SES Unit won the National Australia Bank community safety award for their involvement in rural numbering.

The Structure

The Somerset Region SES Unit, consists of four SES groups (Esk, Kilcoy, Lowood and Toogoolawah) and one Emergency Services Cadet group. Each SES group is run by a volunteer Group Leader and supported by a number of capable officers. The Cadet group is run by the Cadet Coordinator. Overall the Unit is responsible to the SES Controller, Andy Bickerton.

SES is supported by the Queensland Government, Somerset Regional Council and the volunteers.