Five-year-old Hayden Bone from McKenzie Creek is now a ‘Junior Triple Zero Hero’ after receiving an award from the Emergency Services Telecommunications Authority. He won his award for calling triple zero when bales of hay caught fire on his family’s property south of Horsham.

Hayden Bone placed the call last December to advise an ESTA calltaker that his mother and father were not at home the bales of hay caught fire.

He remained calm and provided all the necessary details leading to the dispatch of the fire brigade. The ESTA calltaker nominated the young boy for his award.

Hayden received his Junior Triple Zero Hero award, presented by Police and Emergency Services Minister Bob Cameron at a ceremony in Melbourne.

He was among 22 children to receive Junior Triple Zero Hero awards at the ceremony, which has been running for seven consecutive years.

ESTA operations manager Graham Thiessen said the Junior Triple Zero Hero awards recognises and rewarded the youngsters’ initiative.

“These young people showed the right way to deal with an emergency by picking up the phone and dialling triple zero,” Mr Thiessen said.

“This shows that it’s worth teaching your younger children the address they live at as well as the nearest cross street so we can pinpoint exactly where they are.

“In many cases they’ve been brave and resourceful enough to stay on the line with the operator who has talked them through their ordeal, providing reassurance while help is on the way.

“They’ve also remembered the basic information that our emergency calltakers need – where is the emergency, and what is the emergency,” he said.

ESTA is the statutory authority that provides calltaking and dispatch services to police, fire, ambulance and SES.