Bushfire Response Minister Kim Wells urges CFA and DSE to improve local relationships
Bushfire Response Minister Kim Wells urges CFA and DSE to improve local relationships
28 May 2013
published by www.heraldsun.com.au
Australia — VICTORIA’S two key firefighting agencies have been decribed as suffering from “sibling rivalry” in a government-commissioned report.
Claims about the “dysfunctional” relationship between CFA members and the Department of Sustainability and Environment (now DEPI) were aired in findings about summer’s costly Harrietville bushfire.
Bushfire Response Minister Kim Wells has called for immediate action following Emergency Services Commissioner Michael Hallows’ recommendations that both agencies need to improve their relationships.
“I have requested as a matter of urgency that the Commissioner and Chiefs meet with the local CFA, DEPI firefighters and community members in the Ovens Valley area to address strengthening the relationship between all parties,” Mr Wells said in a statement this morning.
Mr Hallowes’ report, released to the public this morning, was undertaken to provide a factual analysis of the first 72 hours of the monster blaze, sparked by a lightning strike on January 21.
The bushfire took 55 days to bring under control and cost the alpine economy $40 million in property damage and lost tourism revenue.
Contrary to widespread community beliefs, Mr Hallowes found the spread of the fire was unavoidable and the response by both firefighting agencies was adequate.
But the report stated bad blood between community members and the DSE distorted perceptions about the emergency services initial attack on the remote bushfire.
“A proposition was made by members of CFA, DSE and the community that, over many years, relationships between CFA and DSE in the Ovens Valley have been poor and this adversely affects the way they work together during fires.
“In addition, it was evident from members of the community in and around Harrietville that the history of disagreements with DSE about the agency’s management of public land extended to a negative perception about DSE’s approach to managing fires too,” Mr Hallowes stated.
“It is clear that the priority is for a more positive and constructive relationship to be established between DEPI and the Ovens Valley community.”
But the report found that while there were “isolated relationship issues between individual members of DSE and CFA”, “this is neither systemic or agency-wide”.
Mr Hallowes said information provided by both agencies indicated firefighters worked well together on the fireground.
The report concluded that while steep terrain made it difficult for firefighting equipment to access and CFA and DSE had devoted appropriate resources to controlling the blaze.
Mr Wells said there was no information in the report that showed more could’ve been done to prevent the fire from escaping containment lines on January 22.
“Victoria’s firefighters do a fantastic job, often in very difficult circumstances,” he said.
