In August 2005, he was appointed to both positions – and he has held them for the past 12 years. 

But, he is not alone in making an important decision.

At the same time, Allan Davison is stepping down as Upper Hunter Shire Controller and Scone Unit Controller.

“The new Hunter Regional Controller has implemented an amalgamation of the two shires to form the Upper Hunter Cluster,” Mr Elsley said.

“In addition, the roles will be split with a Local Controller to look after the six SES Units (Aberdeen, Denman, Merriwa, Murrurundi, Muswellbrook and Scone) and a separate Unit Controller at each of the six SES Units.

“The position of Upper Hunter Cluster Local Controller was advertised a few weeks ago and Benjamin Maxwell, a member of Muswellbrook Unit, has been appointed for a two-year term starting on August 1.

“John Ward was also named Muswellbrook Unit Controller.

“Both Ben and John have been very active SES members, with both trained as Incident Controllers and also in the national operational framework of emergency services. 

“Ben, in particular, has had experience in incident management both locally and other areas of the state (flooding in Dungog and Forbes).

“John has been involved in incident management roles in regards to storm response.

“I’m very confident that Ben and John will be assets to the SES in their newly-appointed positions.”

Mr Elsley took over as Local Controller (Muswellbrook Shire) and Unit Controller (Muswellbrook SES) on August 1, 2005, after Raymond Butchard decided not to seek reappointment to the positions. 

At the time of his appointment he was an Operations Officer within the Muswellbrook SES Unit, having headquarters administration and operational coordination experience. 

He went through a very steep learning curve in taking on both roles. 

“The job was made a lot easier with some very experienced volunteers to help him along the way,” Mr Elsley said.

One of his first big jobs was to get the Unit packed and ready to move to a temporary headquarters as the facility, which was located behind the Muswellbrook Library, was not part of redevelopment plans for the library. 

Due to some medical issues, he took a back seat to the actual move which was coordinated by Acting Unit Controller Andrew Johnson. 

The temporary headquarters in Thiess Crescent would be home for about three years. 

The location was suitable for operational response, however space was at a premium, and much of the headquarters equipment was in storage for the duration. 

It was also during time at the temporary headquarters a number of the senior members decided to leave the Unit. 

This resulted in response issues in regards to the Units Land Rescue accreditation through the State Rescue Board.

After a number of meetings with Unit members and Hunter Region, it was decided that after 22 years, the Unit would hand in its accreditation. 

This saw the end of the Units involvement as the primary response for Road Crash Rescue, too.

The search was on for a “new” permanent headquarters for the Muswellbrook Unit. 

Mr Elsley worked closely with Muswellbrook Shire Council, and in particular the general manager, to first of all identify a potential site and then for council to obtain it.

In February 2012, a site at 7 Industrial Close was purchased by council and work began to renovate the buildings to make them suitable not only for administration of the Muswellbrook Unit but have the facilities for operational response. 

Mr Elsley worked with council to design a suitable layout at minimal cost to both council and the NSW SES. 

Members of the Muswellbrook Unit were also active in fundraising for additional equipment.

On June 27, 2012, the Muswellbrook Unit moved from the temporary headquarters to the new premises.

“Membership during the time in the temporary headquarters had dropped to about 12 members,” Mr Elsley explained.

“A new headquarters meant a new start for the Unit, and a rebuilding of membership commenced. 

“John Ward was a new member to the Unit (joining while in the temporary headquarters), and he started to take on a more senior role within the Unit. 

“Later on Ben Maxwell and his wife Kaliya both transferred in from the Cooranbong Unit. 

“John was appointed Deputy Local Controller (Corporate Services) and Ben to the positions of Deputy Local Controller (Operations), and Deputy Muswellbrook Unit Controller. 

“Membership grew to a point where there are currently about 28 members.

“As part of the renovations, was the establishment of an Operations Room that would be able to handle shire wide storm and flood responses and then also be able to run larger events should the need arise.

“Incident management was becoming a big part of the SES and in renovating the administration building, there was a need to also look at operational capabilities.”

In NSW, SES Unit vehicles were funded by the SES and local government.

The vehicles purchased were mostly basic, and were dependent on the financial situation of council. 

In many rural areas of the state, the rate base is small in comparison to big city Units. 

The ability of many vehicles to carry enough equipment and the right equipment was an issue. 

Due to financial constraints many Units had vehicles more than 20 years old. 

SES Units responding to jobs in Sydney were subject to road toll charges and were paid either by the Unit or the perspective council.

The decision was made by the SES to have all vehicles transferred into their name through various means. 

Five years ago, Mr Elsley became part of a state-wide group made up of volunteers and paid staff within the SES to work on standard designs for vehicles. 

Many of the emergency services throughout the state have standard response vehicles such as NSW Rural Fire Service, NSW Fire and Rescue and the NSW Ambulance Service. 

In developing a standard vehicle it would mean that no matter which Unit you are a member of, if working in another area each vehicle would have the equipment in the same location.

The aim was to develop standard small, medium and large response vehicles for storm and road crash rescue. 

In doing so, the team could look at standard equipment levels (lacking in many Units), increasing efficiencies due to equipment location within vehicles and also safety. 

Safety for the volunteers was a high priorities as SES volunteers are various ages, and both male and female. 

Weight distribution and weight limits of each vehicle had to be also considered. 

At the end of June 2017, the group was wound up after objectives had been met and vehicles were in production.

At last the SES would be able to join the other emergency services with a standard vehicle for its members, and remember these new vehicles would be used by volunteers who give their time freely to train and then respond to storms, floods and other emergencies. 

Mr Elsley leaves the local senior positions within the SES with mixed emotions. 

He has done his bit for the Unit to have better facilities, and is looking forward to working under the new leadership team as he will still remain a member of the Muswellbrook Unit.

In recent times, he has started to assist the Hunter Region staff in up grading records, and spreading his knowledge gained over the years.