Heartwarming moment a boy, 9, helps volunteers in his own SES uniform as they clean up debris after the Victoria storms
- Judd Feeney wants to join the SES when he is older and has been helping out
- Nine-year-old appears in videos giving weather updates and clearing branches
- Victoria has been battered by wild storms, strong winds and flooding last week
Judd Feeney meeting SES crew member Kevin in their hi-vis gear (pictured)
A young boy fascinated with the SES has pitched in to help crews clean up debris after Victoria’s wild storms – and has even got his own pint sized uniform.
Nine-year-old Judd Feeney from Moonee Ponds has joined SES volunteers for some ‘training’ by clearing branches off roads and giving weather updates.
‘This is Judd Feeney from SES. There’s a branch, see? So don’t go on Maribyrnong Reserve. Be safe. Thank you very much. Bye,’ he advises in one clip.
The boy can be seen wearing hi-vis overalls with the SES logo on the back and his name printed on the chest as he then clears the branch off the road.
In another video he tells residents of Traralgon – two hours east of Melbourne – to beware of strong winds along with hippos and crocodiles in rising floodwaters.
‘Please don’t go through floodwater and take action now to protect your home,’ he says.
Floods caused debris near the entrance of a gold mine in Walhalla, Victoria on June 10 (pictured)
The nine-year-old SES hopeful giving one of his weather updates telling the public to beware of hippos and crocs in the floodwaters (pictured)
His mother Nikki Fox said her son had been obsessed with the SES since one of their search and rescue operations caught his attention.
‘A boy of a similar age got lost at Mount Disappointment recently for three days and he would wake up and watch it on the news and say he wanted to help,’ Ms Fox told Daily Mail Australia.
‘He’s joined scouts and he stages fake rescues with his cousins and abseils off his bunk bed.’
He is also seen in a photograph in his bright orange SES t-shirt – which he wears every day – alongside VICSES volunteer Kevin in his gear and hard hat.
Judd Feeney (pictured) helps clear a fallen branch from Maribyrnong Reserve in Melbourne
Storm damage in Melbourne on June 10 after wild winds and heavy rain swept through the region (pictured)
Judd hopes to join the vertical rescue unit of Essendon SES unit as a volunteer when he turns 15.
Following wild weather last week, Melbourne residents have been told to steer clear of storm-ravaged regions as clean-up efforts continue.
Emergency Management Commissioner Andrew Crisp has cautioned them against a trip to the Dandenong Ranges and parts of Gippsland.
‘My strong message to anyone that is not a local, that does not live up here, stay away,’ he said on Thursday.
‘You’ll be getting in the way of all the great work trying to clear the roads.’
As well as road closures, many national parks have been shut after being deemed inaccessible or dangerous.
People observe the flood water in Traralgon (pictured) on June 10. Rising floodwaters prompted an evacuation warning for parts of the town in the Victorian region of Gippsland
The Dandenong and Yarra ranges national parks and 11 others to Victoria’s east are among the long list off-limits to visitors.
Deputy state response controller Chris Hardman said Victorians must carefully plan their travel to ensure they didn’t run into problems over the weekend and upcoming school holidays.
‘If you’re planning on camping these school holidays, ensure to never camp under trees as after heavy rainfall, they can become unstable,’ he said.
The Victorian government also unveiled a new weekly payment of up to $1680 as some residents face another three weeks without power.