KILMORE, VIC. — Victoria State Emergency Service (VICSES) Kilmore Unit volunteers will be better equipped to respond to emergencies in their community following the opening of their brand-new, state-of-the-art facility next door to their long-time headquarters.
The new home, which features four drive-through motor bays, a modern kitchen, training room and office spaces, will serve as a base of operations for the unit’s more than 50 adult volunteers and growing contingent of junior members, with additional dedicated turnout facilities and extra space for unit training available to support increased participation in the future.
The facility also features accessible bathroom and laundry amenities, can operate on solar power thanks to a 20-kilowatt battery system and is built to allow direct access for response vehicles onto the Northern Highway, a detail expected to improve turnout times and connectivity along Kilmore’s major thoroughfare.
VICSES Kilmore Unit volunteers were joined by VICSES Chief Executive Officer Rob Purcell, Emergency Management Commissioner Tim Wiebusch and Northern Victoria MP Jaclyn Symes today to officially open the new headquarters, marking the beginning of a new era for a unit which first commenced service in 1981.
“The brand-new VICSES Kilmore Unit facility marks a significant moment for the local volunteers who play such an instrumental role in emergency response in their community,” VICSES Chief Executive Officer Rob Purcell said.
Funded by the State Government and developed in partnership with the Victorian Infrastructure Delivery Authority (VIDA) the new headquarters was brought together by Indigenous construction service Barpa, following the organisation’s involvement in similarly successful VICSES unit builds at Aintree and Point Cook in recent years.
While volunteers adapt to their brand-new base, VICSES Kilmore Unit will also maintain access to their former facility of some 45 years, which will be used as an additional storage shed on land directly adjoining their new home.
“With these new headquarters, our volunteers will be better equipped than ever to respond and support the people of Kilmore and surrounding towns with the empathy, professionalism and care they take such pride in providing,” VICSES CEO Rob Purcell said.
Regularly among the busiest VICSES units in the Hume emergency management region and one of the busiest in regional Victoria, VICSES Kilmore Unit volunteers were called to almost 500 incidents in 2025/26, including more than 300 storm-related emergencies and almost 70 road crash incidents.
