TWO Granite Belt State Emergency Service volunteers have been recognised among Warwick members at a local awards night.

South West Regional Manager for the SES Robert Bundy presented Charles Jensen from Stanthorpe with the Meritorious Service Medal Clasp while Brian Springborg from Wallangarra was presented with the Assistant Comissioner's Commendation.

SES Stanthorpe local controller Michael Bell, who looks after both the Stanthorpe and Wallangarra groups, said it was an excellent recognition of the number of years both men had spent with the service.

"A lot of the work of our volunteers goes unnoticed so the annual awards are all about recognising the effort they put in,” Mr Bell said.

"Charlie's award was for the 30 years he's spent with the Stanthorpe SES.

"Brian has also spent 25 years with the service, and for 13 of those years he was group leader which meant he was in charge of ensuring the Wallangarra group was prepared for disaster as well as his own training.”

Mr Bell said there were about 45 volunteers across both groups, but the local unit was always looking to welcome more members.

"Obviously we have our members who have given a large portion of their time to the service but we are an aging service,” he said.

"We have a range of members from 18 to 80 and have lots of different jobs available but ideally we would like to get younger members in as a lot of the work we do does require a higher level of fitness.

"The 45 members might seem like a lot but if we get rolling storms and we need to allow our guys to rest and recuperate, we can quickly chew through that number.”

For more information on the SES and to sign on to volunteer, go to www. ses.qld.gov.au or phone Michael on 0487301898.