With lights flashing on Main Road, the Perth Fire Station was a beacon for hungry travellers at the weekend.
The volunteer firefighting crew was doing their part for a different cause: raising money for the Melbourne Firefighter Stair Climb.
Perth Volunteer Fire Brigade chief Danny Littlejohn, second-officer Simon Chandler and third-officer Jason Stevenson will again take part in the event.?
On September 7, 600 firefighters will gather at the ground floor of Crown Metropol Hotel wearing 25 kilograms of gear and a breathing apparatus, ready to race the 28 floors to the top.
The event aims to raise $700,000 to help fight depression, PTSD and suicide.
The three participants, along with other members of the brigade, held a sausage sizzle from the front of the station on Saturday.
It might be the third year Mr Stevenson has participated, but that “doesn’t mean I’ll go any quicker,” he laughed. “It feels alright before you start and after you finish it feels alright. But when you’re doing it it’s not fun.”
“It’s a good cause so that’s why we do it. And it’s good to see so many stations around Tasmania being involved.
“Even people from New Zealand come over. And in the past, they’ve had people from America come over as well.”
On the fundraising front, he said the station had done well. “[But] overall, that is the big picture.”
At the time the team was selling sausages on Saturday, $14,359 had been raised by the state. Last year, Tasmania contributed $35,447 to the total. With more than two weeks of fundraising to go, the national total has topped $215,000.
Donations aren’t the only way people can contribute either. A car battery drive has also been organised by the event. Those with old batteries can take them to Sims Metal Management sites in Bell Bay, Invermay and Bridgewater.
“We’ll [also] accept the car batteries here or contact us via the Facebook page and we can collect them locally,” said Mr Littlejohn.