Its first open night of the year failed to lure the desired level of interest.

"Ideally, I'd like to get another 20 members," Wingecarribee SES local controller Anthony Kasoulis said.

Currently the local SES has 22 active members and 13 reserves.

Mr Kasoulis said while the showing at the open night "wasn't too bad", the local SES was still keen to attract more members.

He said Tuesday's open night managed to attract another two members, and he hoped to sign up another three who were unable to attend.

But to improve the efficiency in responding to natural disasters, he said the local SES still needed more active volunteers.

"The problem is, being a volunteer organisation, a lot of people's situations change, whether it's through family circumstances or whatever," he said.

Mr Kasoulis said he would like to see active volunteer numbers almost double. Currently, numbers remain relatively stable, with new members joining at the same rate others move on.

Tuesday's open night featured presentations by local SES and representatives from the Illawarra and South Coast division. It included a video and basic history, followed by an on-site scenario training demonstration to offer a life-like insight into the role of an active SES member.

The evening also offered a chance to check out the Wingecarribee SES's Mittagong headquarters and equipment, including the new Mitsubishi Canter rescue truck presented by Member for Kiama Matt Brown last week.

Mr Kasoulis said SES volunteers had the chance to meet new people of various ages and backgrounds, make new friends, learn new skills and help the community.

He said anyone, regardless of skills, knowledge and talents could actively assist the SES by undertaking training to fill roles in rescue and headquarters.

He said SES volunteers were trained to national standards in a wide range of skills, including first-aid, general rescue, landsearch, storm-damage control, and operations and logistics management.