Robert Pinkerton at the Tauranga Fire Station. Photo / John Borren
Tauranga firefighter Robert Pinkerton, known as Pinky, is being recognised this month for 50 years in the fire service.
Starting on June 28, 1973, Pinky has completed 51 years, with no intentions of stopping any time soon.
“As a child, I was brought up at the Tauranga Fire Station. My dad was station officer and we lived in the little old warden house next door,” he said.
“My father did 24 years as a volunteer at Tauranga, so with my 51 years, and my cousin Brian Pinkerton, also known as Pinky, who has done 45-plus years – between us we’ve done more than 115 years.”
Brian, who was based at Te Puke Volunteer Fire Brigade, along with Robert’s wife Michal and two of their four children, joined Robert at Tauranga Racecourse on July 20 for a Double Gold Star Honours Night.
Robert received an award for his 50 years of service, while fellow Tauranga firefighter Melvern Wainwright was honoured for 25 years. Other firefighters also received awards.
“We are privileged and honoured to have Pinky as our VSO [Volunteer Support Officer]. His knowledge and expertise are invaluable,” says Keta Davis, speaking on behalf of Robert’s operational support team and the volunteers under his wing.
“He has been a great mentor to us all and we look forward to the many more things we have to learn from him.”
An Ōtūmoetai College foundation student, Robert first worked for Government Life, now Tower Insurance.
“I got transferred to Wellington with Government Life and was a volunteer firefighter from age 17 with Wellington Fire Police. I was a volunteer for the next 23 years.”
After 12 years he shifted to Auckland, continuing as a Fire Police volunteer while working as a tow truck driver for a panelbeating firm, before returning to Tauranga to work for Tauranga Recycling, and Chubb Fire.
“I did 23 years with Fire Police until I got full-time employment in 1996, with the New Zealand Fire Service.
“They did a big recruitment back then and took on 240 firefighters permanently. They hadn’t employed career firefighters for years.”
After completing three months’ training in Christchurch in 1996, he was deployed to the Northland station in Wellington for about eight years until landing a position in Kawerau.
“The only way back to Tauranga then was through Kawerau. I did 14 months’ work there, then finally home again to Tauranga.”
One of Tauranga’s Blue Watch Crew, his days of being back on the trucks came to an end after a brain haemorrhage in 2015, which came after two knee replacements.
“To get back on the trucks after a knee operation, you have to go through the physical competency test, which I managed to do, but then after the brain haemorrhage, I wasn’t allowed back on the trucks.”
After a full recovery, he says local managers created a job for him as a VSO.
“I look after five stations – Waihī Beach, Athenree, Matakana Island, Katikati and Ōmokoroa.”
Robert had also been involved with the Tauranga Emergency Services Food Drive committee for about eight years and, with Michal, has been a member of the Tauranga Samba Band.
“Michal and I have been married for 33 years, after meeting in Wellington. I’ve always been so grateful for how she has cared for me, after two knee operations and the brain haemorrhage.”
Robert has always enjoyed working with the community, doing kitchen fire demonstrations and taking the Firewise programmes to local schools.
He had been at the scene of some significant fires over his full life of service, including the fire at the multistorey Hannahs factory in Wellington in 1977 and the Broadcasting House fire behind Parliament in 1997.
“I was driving the second truck arriving at Broadcasting House that day.
“Most of our crew were almost killed when the floor they were on dropped but, due to the quick action of the station officer, they managed to get to the walls before falling through the floor.”
He also recalls the 1984 ICI Riverview factory chemical fire in Auckland, with many firefighters impacted by the chemical contamination.
“At that fire I was manning the canteen, feeding the firefighters.”
He’s also the officer in charge of the operational support unit based in Tauranga, which provides scene safety at vehicle accidents, and he runs a mobile canteen for feeding crews during major incidents.
He says firefighters these days attend vehicle crashes and medical incidents, as well as other types of emergencies, alongside their community work.
“Every time I go over the Kaimai Range on State Highway 29, I can pinpoint where every major accident has happened that I’ve attended.”
He has no plans to slow down.
“Nope, I enjoy working with my volunteer stations and the career staff.”
- SunLive