Community
22 August, 2025
Fifty years of diligence
SES marks poignant milestone with special events across Far North
THE State Emergency Services 50-year flag has been given a workout in recent weeks as it makes its way through the Far Northern Queensland region during SES Week.
SES Mossman Group visited Port Douglas with officers Ms Sharm Giles and local controller Stephen Bigby posing with the flag at Flagstaff Lookout overlooking Four Mile Beach.
SES week runs from August 18-24 and gives people the chance to honour the hard work and dedication of the thousands of Queensland SES volunteers who serve their communities.
The week officially concludes with the Queensland SES State Awards ceremony where the most outstanding and exemplary volunteers are recognised and awarded for their service.
Locally, it will culminate in Cairns on Sunday, August 24 with an SES convoy that runs from the northern beaches into Cairns.
“We would love a toot or wave from the public showing their support for our awesome SES members,” a spokeswoman said.
The week has also been an opportunity to mark SES Queensland’s 50th anniversary.
While the official date is on December 11, the celebrations will be year-long, beginning in August and ending in June, 2026.
A Facebook campaign on the SES page reveals the 50-year flag taking on celebrity status as it appears around the region.
It has been photographed with SES groups in Cairns, Mareeba, Mossman and Coen, Kowanyama and Pormpuraaw on western Cape York Peninsula, and has even made its way to the top of the country with the SES NPA Bamaga members posing with the flag at the tip of Cape York.
The flag will be journeying across the state as local groups celebrate five decades of service.
– For more information and to see the remote and remarkable areas where the SES provide their services, head to their Facebook page: https://bit.ly/47ApEEU
– For information about volunteering with Queensland SES, go to https://bit.ly/45mFJwA
– For assistance with a life-threatening situation phone Triple Zero (000) immediately.
– For assistance with non-life-threatening situations — such as help with a damaged roof or storm damage — phone SES on 132 500.
