This small brass plaque to the late Joe Trent can be found at the base of Toorongo Falls near Noojee.
It was Joe’s son Gregory who had been lost in the bush for 27 hours on July 16 and 17, during the middle of winter in 1967.
Joseph Charles Trent died of a heart attack two weeks later on 30 July 1967. It’s said the strain of the search contributed to his death. He was 54 and is buried at Rye.
His wife Rita and the family erected this plaque, which is a bit misleading because it gives the false impression that it was Joe that died in the bush.
Joe had been a truck and tractor driver and served in the Citizens Military Forces (CMF) during World War Two – which explains the smaller plaque from the Rye sub-branch of the RSL.
During 1966-67 the Forests Commission supported the Police in 35 search and rescue operations.
Another major search was mounted at Toorongo Falls for Kostya (Costa) Mezentseff, aged 5, who ran away during a family picnic on 27 August 1972. The search was scaled down by Police after five days, but local FCV staff and other groups such as the Scouts and St John Ambulance persisted until early September. But sadly, Kostya was never found.
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/106969601
https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/102003511/11016104
Victoria’s Forests & Bushfire Heritage 