Surprise siren drive-by celebration

On 12 April, Eildon Fire Brigade member Greg Lund drove through a neighbourhood to celebrate Jeannie Gribble’s 100th birthday.

Surprise siren drive-by celebration

After completing a service run, Greg Lund paid a short visit to Jeanie’s street to wish her a happy birthday.

Greg kept to physical distancing standards and stayed in the truck while the sirens cheered.

Organiser Greg Harriman said Jeanie was so surprised.

“I had the bad news three weeks ago when I had to cancel everyone’s booking at the AQUA bar and café in Eildon because of coronavirus (COVID-19) and Jeanie and her family were one of the groups planning to go,” Greg said.

“Eildon is a small, very close community and we knew Jeanie would be self-isolated throughout this period.

“We talked with her neighbours and members of the community and decided that if we needed to go to the shops on Sunday why not drive past on the way and say happy birthday.

“The neighbours helped decorate the street and we made sure we kept our social distance and everyone stayed on their own property.”

Eildon brigade Captain Nicki Lund said it was important to stick to coronavirus regulations.

“We were really conscious to ensure we were doing the right thing too by only having a single member in the truck, wearing disposable gloves and not decorating the truck,” Nicki said.

“Greg was out doing a service run and was able to do a drive by because of it.”

The social media post has already had thousands of views including Jeanie’s family in New South Wales.

“She was blown away when the local fire truck came down the street,” Greg said.

“Probably the most heartfelt thing was reading everyone’s responses on social media and getting to send the video to her family who couldn’t be with her, but could share this special moment virtually.”

/CFA News Release. View in full here.