Qld Rural fire service - Malone review delivery

Media release

Malone Review Team Update December 2013

Since the handing down of the Police and Community Safety Review (Keelty Review) on the 10th September, the Newman Government and Malone Review Working Group have been focused on delivering the majority of the 91 recommendations of the Malone Review into the Rural Fire Service.


Photo sourced ABC


The Rural Fire Service in Queensland has suffered from the neglect of successive Labor Governments over many years. It is my role and that of Minister for Police, Fire and Emergency Services Jack Dempsey to ensure a solid foundation is laid to rebuild an organisation that supports 34,000 volunteer firefighters, Rural Fire Brigades, SES volunteers and State Emergency Service units, which provide community defence across Queensland.

From meetings across the state with volunteers and the large number of submissions that were made, together we’ve set a clear outline of what the Rural Fire Service should look like in the future. We are now in the process of ensuring that RFSQ is empowered to enable its team to meet diverse community needs into the future.

The position of Deputy Commissioner Rural Fire and State Emergency Services will be advertised nationally in early 2014. This role will be instrumental in providing leadership and strategic direction to the Rural Fire Service, as well as the State Emergency Service, Coast Guard and Volunteer Marine Rescue. One of the prime attributes of the new Deputy Commissioner is a solid grounding in volunteering and an understanding of the ethos and values of the volunteer.

There are a number of legislative changes that are required to enable my vision, and the legal frame work is something that will not change overnight, as a solid foundation for the acknowledgment and recognition of volunteers will set that basis that brigades and units will operate from for potentially the next twenty years.

The sign-off of the jointly-agreed recommendations is expected by the end of March 2014, however to date the Malone Review Working Group has ticked off on 36 recommendations. This, in conjunction with the appointment of the Deputy Commissioner Rural Fire and State Emergency Services, will see the implementation of these approved recommendations. It is vital that this be communicated widely to RFSQ, SES Staff, volunteers, brigades, units and to all concerned stakeholders. This open communication will ensure there is a wide understanding within the community about the roles and responsibilities that we all share in defending Queensland.

 

 

 

 

In essence, we are embarking upon a journey that will lead to a more empowered Rural Fire Service supported by a strong, well-led arm of an all hazards approach organisation and I ask you all to work together towards reaching our common goal.
I take this opportunity to wish you all a merry Christmas and a Happy New Year and hope that there is enough rain to fill your tanks and dams without the deluge that beset us earlier this year.

Ted Malone MP

Assistant Minister for Emergency Volunteers

 

 

Previous related post

Rural fire service – Malone review



Rural fire service – Malone review

Volunteers in the Rural fire service especially primary producer brigades in areas west of the Great Divide in Qld were more than a little cheesed off with how the service was run with an administration seemly out of touch with the needs and the realities of fighting fires in the bush.

Photo sourced RFBAQ article



They were frustrated by things like ordered equipment very slow to be delivered; an overstaffed head office but with essential regional offices being closed down; an increasing move to micro management of rural brigades from afar instead of playing a supportive role to efforts in the field; local experience and local knowledge not respected; inappropriate, highly structured emergency response procedures and little emphasis on preventive mitigation; panic suspension of permits very early in the fire season when it was ideal for cooler preventive burns; red tape such as criminal check being made on volunteers even those with long service medals; training courses that were next door to useless and ever increasing paperwork.

In my Hookswood Rd Fire post back in early December 2012, I wrote about how frustrated and angry many volunteers were at the farcical mismanagement by Qld Fire & Rescue of a fire north of Miles. I mentioned that on the day before attending this fire that I was at a public forum in Roma for an inquiry into the rural fire service. This was known as the Malone review headed by Ted Malone Assistant Minister for Emergency Volunteers. Mr Malone and his review team conducted 13 forums across the state and received 240 submissions before the Malone Review into Rural Fire Services in Queensland was written and released.

The Roma forum was well attended and there was appreciation for the insights that Injune landowner, Ray Klein, brought before the review team. Ray had a 20 year career in the Rural fire service; he ran the regional office in Roma before retiring from a paid position in the service to move back to the family farm at Injune and remaining active as a volunteer in his local brigade in the rural fire service.

Below is a scanned image of a letter to the editor by Ray Klein in Roma’s Western Star newspaper. Ray gives high praise to the Malone review calling it as “nothing less than exceptional with its accurate findings.”

Also supporting the Malone review as “one of the most important and positive steps” is the Rural Fire Brigades Association of Queensland. From the RFBAQ newsletter is this article, Malone Review of Rural Fire Service Queensland announced, which list the following facts it found amongst the 91 recommendations of the Malone review.

• All RFS District Offices will remain open
  (No District Office closures in Queensland, possibility of opening more)
• All RFS District Office staff positions will remain
  (all current DI, ATSO, BTSO & Admin staff positions will be retained)
• District Inspectors will now be empowered to support their brigades and volunteers
  (District delegations will be greatly increased with most decisions made locally)
• The RFSQ will be led by a Deputy Chief Officer, Rural Fire Service Queensland
  (the RFSQ will be a separate organisation from the Urban Fire Service)
• Brigades and volunteers will be able to access more and a wider range of training
  (including 4wd, truck licences, chainsaw, first aid and the ability for recognition of prior learning and including skills portability from SES and other volunteer services)
• Existing BSO’s will be attached to District Offices with flexibility to meet local needs
  (over time the role will be extended to all District Inspectors Offices with role flexibility identified against local needs)
• There will be 3 Regional Offices within the RFSQ
  (District delegations will be greatly increased with most decisions made locally)
• Equipment and trucks will be designed to meet local needs incorporating local volunteer knowledge and requirements
• Red tape reduction will see Volunteers and Brigades using simple, workable, reporting and financial forms and induction processes
• Command & control of incidents
  Vegetation fire in rural area – RFSQ
  Structural fire in rural area – Urban with RFSQ support
  Vegetation fire in urban area –Urban with RFSQ support if required
  Structural fire in urban area – Urban
• Brigades currently receiving a levy from council will continue to receive same
• Brigades currently not receiving a levy from council will be supported by council in pursuit of levy or support if requested
• Fit for duty will be overhauled
• PPE will be more readily available
  (complete overhaul of the supply chain)
• RFBAQ elected volunteer Representatives will sit on RFSQ staff selection panels
• RFSQ appliances will remain yellow
• Formation of Ministerial Advisory Council for RFS & SES Volunteers
• RFSQ develop and distribute a less formal uniform for Volunteers and Brigades

 

Previously Published related posts

Hookwood Rd Fire 

Preventive Burning  



A new year begins

 

Preventive Burning

In my previous post, Hookswood Rd Fire, I expressed my frustration at the incompetence of Qld fire & rescue who took control of all efforts to fight a fire and by their inaction causing a big fire to grow to something far more dangerous and destructive. I was also angry to learn from those who were on the scene on the Sunday, Monday and first thing Tuesday before I was called in as part of the Downfall Creek rural fire volunteers, of 3 occasions were the fire could have contained as a small fire and that on 2 of these occasions the opportunity wasn’t taken because of blindly following of the rule book by Qld fire & rescue.

Having hours of inaction on my hands during Tuesday and hearing the outrage of my fellow rural fire volunteers I made sure that their views became known to the media. These two articles are the result –

 Heat on resourcingas fire threats intensify

More RFS review forQld

This image above was developed from the NAFI web site gives the perfect illustration of why preventive burning is very important. http://www.firenorth.org.au

The image also shows what sectors of the fire the Downfall Creek brigade played a part.

On Tuesday night our crew joined others to back burn to save property of a family. The Qld fire & rescue incident controller would have had a heart attack if he knew that we went to the lead of the fire yet many km’s away. The sky glowed red, thick smoke billowed overhead and the roar of the fire was enough to strike fear. Earlier we had sighted a spot fire start up 1km in advance of the fire front. We knew of nothing that would stop this fires advance. We left that location to go back to burn a wide band around the house and buildings.

The Downfall Creek rural fire brigade operated within the Barakula State Forest at the western flank of the fire from Wednesday afternoon to Thursday night. The forestry fire fighters were on the eastern side of the fire on the Wednesday and could only bring equipment to the western side on the Thursday. When the forestry workers shift changed soon after dark on Thursday we learnt from the shift supervisor what stopped the fire front from going any further. On Wednesday night he was just off to the east of the lead of the fire front. At 3am the fire was still crowning, that is burning in the tree tops, when it hit an area that had a preventive burn back in September. In the image above it is the peach colour area. The fire lost its ground fuel source and bit by bit died down to a halt.

Look at the image to see how few preventive burns have occurred in the fires path, both in privately held land and the state owned state forest. There was a large fuel build up in this area. You don’t need to be Einstein to know that fuel load plus hot temperature plus ignition equals destruction. More needs to be done to encourage cool burns in August and September.

Photo - Wens night in Barakula State Forest

 

UPDATE #1

In this article from September 2009, Guest post: Barakula state forest to be converted into a national park , retired forestor Peter Lear warns of the  inevitable destructive fire event occuring.

 

Roading systems are allowed to revert to scrub and very little controlled burning is done. Fuel build up will eventually lead to fire which in the case of Barakula will destroy 100 years of sustainable forest management in the cypress forests. Barakula endures regular periods of severe fire risk, so it is not a matter if fire will occur but when it will occur. The resultant devastation will be dependent on previous controlled burning regime and the management of the particular wildfire, which is very difficult without good access (roading) and trained staff.

 

A previous article in which Brian Bahnisch writes about Barakula

 

 

UPDATE #2

Related article published 21st Jan 2013, Alien Environment Fuels Firestorms by Viv Forbes