Hon. Sally Talbot questions the adequacy of firefighting equipment for the Southern Districts Volunteer Bush Fire Brigade. The Attorney General, representing the Minister for Emergency Services, responds with details of appliance provisions and support.

AnsweredQoN 1422Legislative Council
Asked
1 December 2015
Portfolio
Emergency Services

QuestionView source ↗

SOUTHERN DISTRICTS VOLUNTEER BUSH FIRE BRIGADE —
FIREFIGHTING EQUIPMENT
1422. Hon SALLY TALBOT to the
Attorney General representing the Minister for Emergency Services:
I refer to the City of Mandurah's Southern Districts
Volunteer Bush Fire Brigade firefighting equipment.
(1) Does the
Minister for Emergency Services consider the Southern Districts Volunteer Bush
Fire Brigade's one four-wheel drive 500-litre capacity firefighting
vehicle is sufficient to protect the people of the southern Mandurah area from
a bushfire?
(2) Can the
minister confirm that the Southern Districts Volunteer Bush Fire Brigade was to
take delivery of a 3 000-litre tanker and that delivery has now been delayed
until after the 2015–16 summer and that in lieu of the new tanker, they
have been advised they will receive another four-wheel drive 500-1itre vehicle?
(3) Given that
four-wheel drive 500-litre vehicles are used as ancillary firefighting
vehicles, and so are not an option for fighting a large bushfire, how does the
minister think the Southern Districts Volunteer Bush Fire Brigade can defend
southern Mandurah from bushfires with only two ancillary firefighting vehicles?

AnswerView source ↗

One behalf of the Minister for Emergency Services, I thank
the honourable member for some notice of this question.
(1) The
Southern Districts Volunteer Bush Fire Brigade's operations are
serviced by two permanent four-wheel drive firefighting appliances, one of
which has been withdrawn from service due to its condition. As an interim, the
bush fire brigade was provided with a 2 000-litre four-wheel drive appliance on
9 November 2015.
(2) The new
replacement 3 000-litre appliance is being provided two years earlier than originally
scheduled and, on delivery, will provide the volunteers with a fit-for-purpose,
state-of-the-art appliance inclusive of a deluge system, burnover blankets,
radiant heat shields, in-cabin breathing devices, critical component lagging
and heat-resistant panels.
(3) The
Southern Districts Volunteer Bush Fire Brigade is currently operating with one
2 000-litre and one 500-litre capacity four-wheel drive appliance. Support from
nearby resources is also available to assist in the defence of southern Mandurah.

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