A former farmer from WA's wheatbelt could be the oldest emergency service volunteer in the country. Harold Proud has more than 50 years under his belt as a member of the Kulin Fire Brigade. And as his 104th birthday approaches, he's showing no signs of slowing down.
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00:00In the farming town of Kulin, a milestone more than a century in the making is approaching.
00:07I'll be 104 on the 9th of December.
00:12A member of more than 20 volunteer groups, including the local fire brigade,
00:17it might just make him the country's oldest firefighter.
00:20Yeah, I was told that I was the oldest, even WA.
00:25I was the captain of the Kulin North Brigade
00:33and dealt with all sorts of situations.
00:38These days, the centurion spends more time in his garden than at the fire station,
00:42but he's still ready to lend a hand.
00:45I could put out a little bit of stuff.
00:50He's fought dozens of fires, from small-scale scrub fires to out-of-control blazes,
00:55but says the outcome is always the same.
00:58Getting the fire out and then sitting around having a few drinks.
01:03It's an approach others think could be the secret to his longevity.
01:07Yeah, we heard the lady on the other day on the radio,
01:10she drank a can of bush chook each day, EMU export,
01:16so he's actually started having a stubby a day, thinking that that might do.
01:23Doctor reckoned the first person to live to 150 had been born in the world,
01:28and he thought that was him too as well.
01:31Mr Proud says he owes his long life to staying active, volunteering and having a healthy diet.
01:36That includes a tin of sardines every day, washed down with a can of beer.
01:40And while his 104th birthday is just around the corner,
01:43he's already looking forward to future milestones ahead.
01:46When I turned 100 I thought it would be nice to get to 105,
01:52it's not very likely I suppose, but I'm just about there in the next year,
02:00and I can see 110 in the distance.
02:06A proud volunteer putting up a solid fight against the tide of age.
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