Paramedic Ray Willis lists the Thredbo landslide as one of the most dramatic events he has had to deal with over his 50 years as a New South Wales ambulance officer.
Mr Willis has now been honoured with a medal marking his decades of service, mostly in the Queanbeyan area.
Upon receiving the medal on Monday, Mr Willis reflected on the changes the industry had seen since he started out.
"We were single responders when I first came to Queanbeyan," Mr Willis said.
"We had a first aid kit, a little bit of oxygen equipment, some inflatable splints and of course the Thomas splint, which was very important."
Mr Willis said that over the years he had attended many serious accidents and other traumatic events, but that he also witnessed joy, including delivering babies.
"Over the years [I delivered] four or five I think, most of them in Queanbeyan," Mr Willis said.
"In houses, [on the] side of the road a couple of times."
From tragedy to triumph
One of his most dramatic call-outs was to the Thredbo landslide in July 1997 which claimed 18 lives.
Mr Willis said when he arrived on the morning after the landslide, in the hours that followed, the scene was chaotic.
"To know what had happened and that there was quite a lot of people deceased around you, [it was] very sad," he said.
Three days later, Stuart Diver was pulled from the rubble.
"I was there on the afternoon when they brought him out," he said.
"There was a lot of clapping going on, a lot of people very happy about that."
He said he had continued working as a paramedic for 50 years because he loved the job.
And he's not the only one.
Brian White from the NSW Ambulance service said it was not unusual for officers to put in at least 50 years.
"Across the southern sector, which is the southern end of NSW, we've still had staff at the age of 77, 78, 79 working for us," he said.
Brutal hours all worth it
But it is a job that is hard on family life.
Ray Willis's wife Maureen said it was very difficult when they were both doing shift work, when she was still employed as a nurse.
She said there was one thing Ray Willis did not enjoy.
"Being on call. He used to get very upset about being called out, having his sleep disturbed," she said.
But she said he got up and did what was needed anyway.
Mr Willis said the job had become easier with far better equipment.
He was also impressed by the young paramedics working in the service now.
"The new paramedics coming in are highly trained, they know their job," Mr Willis said.
"They are really good, I can learn from them sometimes."
Ray Willis said despite achieving 50 years and receiving a medal of recognition, he was not retiring just yet.
But when he did eventually make the jump, he said he planned to continue using his skills and volunteer as a driver for the newborn emergency transfer service.
