In January 2026 the Tallangatta Sports Centre at Rowen Park served as the base camp for emergency crews responding to the Mt Lawson–Walwa bushfires.

Rows of tents fill the oval. Power, water and communications are ready to go. While response levels may have changed since these photos were taken, they capture something lasting: the value of being prepared.

Following the devastating 2019–2020 fires, local people and community groups invested in practical upgrades at Rowen Park, including water tanks, solar batteries, back-up generator connectivity, NBN and Starlink. These improvements were enabled through grants distributed by Border Trust via the Towong Community Bushfire Disaster Relief Fund, established to support long-term recovery and resilience across the Upper Murray.

As Tallangatta local Peter Haysey shared with us:
“We had hoped we wouldn’t need these resources again — but here we are in 2026 finding out how important your contribution is.”

This is preparedness in action. Infrastructure put in place years ago was ready when it was needed — not as a last-minute fix but as the result of thoughtful, community-led decisions