Captain Anthony Baker has been reinstated to his position with the Mount Compass CFS.

In a short post on Facebook on Christmas Eve the brigade said, “Our Christmas present will be welcoming Anthony Baker back as captain tomorrow after a stint on the side-line”.

More than 29 000 people signed a petition for Captain Baker to be reinstated after he was suspended in September.

He was suspended after speaking publicly about his concerns over the brigade’s new truck.  He said at the time he had tried repeatedly to get the issue resolved internally.

The $500 000 34P truck was too heavy to be registered to operate at full capacity. 

After Captain Baker went public with his concerns the CFS received permission from the National Heavy Vehicle Regulator to operate the truck at its full laden weight but he was left suspended until yesterday.

Mount Compass CFS Captain suspended for speaking out

Concerns were raised earlier this month that Captain’s Baker’s absence meant the Mount Compass brigade was unable to respond as promptly to fires and other incidents.

Captain Baker has been a CFS volunteer for eight years and was the Mount Compass Citizen of the Year in 2020.

Under Section 21 of the Fire and Emergency Services Regulations (2021) members of the CFS who "behaves in a manner that reflects or is likely to reflect adversely on SACFS" can be "liable to disciplinary action".