❓ The Minister for Emergency Services provides an update on the rollout of the crew cab protection program for emergency services vehicles, highlighting completed stages, new funding for additional vehicles, and specific regional allocations. The program aims to protect firefighters during burnover events.
AnsweredQoN 502Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
EMERGENCY SERVICES — CREW CAB PROTECTION PROGRAM
502. Mrs R.M.J. CLARKE to the Minister for
Emergency Services:
I refer to the McGowan Labor government's
commitment to supporting our dedicated emergency services volunteers, and
particularly those based in regional Western Australia. Can the minister update
the house on the rollout of the crew cab protection program and how this will
benefit our emergency services volunteers as they work tirelessly to defend and
protect our communities?
502. Mrs R.M.J. CLARKE to the Minister for
Emergency Services:
I refer to the McGowan Labor government's
commitment to supporting our dedicated emergency services volunteers, and
particularly those based in regional Western Australia. Can the minister update
the house on the rollout of the crew cab protection program and how this will
benefit our emergency services volunteers as they work tirelessly to defend and
protect our communities?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for Murray–Wellington for
that question. I also thank the member for Murray–Wellington for
joining me on part of the rural fire division tour around Western Australia,
and particularly that part between Pinjarra and Bunbury, because her presence
and comments were very well accepted. I thank her very much indeed.
The member spoke about crew cab protection. As members
may remember—the Speaker will remember this—this came about
because of the tragic death of the firefighter at Black Cat Creek, who was
burnt in a burnover. A burnover is a full-on bushfire that actually envelopes
and completely consumes a fire engine. Unfortunately, that volunteer lost her
life. As a result of the lessons learnt from that death, the government of the
day began a crew cab protection program. Stage 1 related to the installation of
burnover blankets and radiant heat shields, and was completed in 2016. Stage 2
commenced in September 2015 and will be completed in June this year, and
includes the installation of in-cab air, a water deluge system for the vehicles
and critical component lagging and panels. Stage 3, which is the installation
of automated vehicle location devices, has now been completed across all
vehicles involved in fire and emergency services across the whole state.
I am very pleased to be able to say that the McGowan
Labor government is actually going even further. As a result of this year's
budget, another $8.7 million has been allocated to fit fire crew protection in
the 261 fire appliances throughout the state that were not included in the
program done by the previous government. Many of those are in northern Western Australia.
I will get to the ones in northern Western Australia, but there are 25
volunteer fire and rescue or bush fire brigades in the metropolitan region that
will have burnover technology installed, which includes brigades in Yanchep,
West Swan, Bedfordale and Kwinana. The 82 high-fire season bushfire appliances
will also be done. They are the appliances that go up north during its fire
season and then come back down south during our fire season. There are 23
appliances in the goldfields–midlands that will have their crew cab
protection done, 17 appliances in the Kimberley, and 22 appliances in the
Pilbara. There will be eight appliances in the electorate of North West Central.
I acknowledge the work of the previous government in moving quickly after the
death of a firefighter to install crew cab protection. That will allow
firefighters to survive a burnover, should it envelop their vehicles. I am
pleased to have that technology installed, and I am even more pleased that we
have put the money in place to ensure that all the other vehicles left around
the state will also have that protection installed so those firefighters will
be able to survive any burnovers that may impact on them.
that question. I also thank the member for Murray–Wellington for
joining me on part of the rural fire division tour around Western Australia,
and particularly that part between Pinjarra and Bunbury, because her presence
and comments were very well accepted. I thank her very much indeed.
The member spoke about crew cab protection. As members
may remember—the Speaker will remember this—this came about
because of the tragic death of the firefighter at Black Cat Creek, who was
burnt in a burnover. A burnover is a full-on bushfire that actually envelopes
and completely consumes a fire engine. Unfortunately, that volunteer lost her
life. As a result of the lessons learnt from that death, the government of the
day began a crew cab protection program. Stage 1 related to the installation of
burnover blankets and radiant heat shields, and was completed in 2016. Stage 2
commenced in September 2015 and will be completed in June this year, and
includes the installation of in-cab air, a water deluge system for the vehicles
and critical component lagging and panels. Stage 3, which is the installation
of automated vehicle location devices, has now been completed across all
vehicles involved in fire and emergency services across the whole state.
I am very pleased to be able to say that the McGowan
Labor government is actually going even further. As a result of this year's
budget, another $8.7 million has been allocated to fit fire crew protection in
the 261 fire appliances throughout the state that were not included in the
program done by the previous government. Many of those are in northern Western Australia.
I will get to the ones in northern Western Australia, but there are 25
volunteer fire and rescue or bush fire brigades in the metropolitan region that
will have burnover technology installed, which includes brigades in Yanchep,
West Swan, Bedfordale and Kwinana. The 82 high-fire season bushfire appliances
will also be done. They are the appliances that go up north during its fire
season and then come back down south during our fire season. There are 23
appliances in the goldfields–midlands that will have their crew cab
protection done, 17 appliances in the Kimberley, and 22 appliances in the
Pilbara. There will be eight appliances in the electorate of North West Central.
I acknowledge the work of the previous government in moving quickly after the
death of a firefighter to install crew cab protection. That will allow
firefighters to survive a burnover, should it envelop their vehicles. I am
pleased to have that technology installed, and I am even more pleased that we
have put the money in place to ensure that all the other vehicles left around
the state will also have that protection installed so those firefighters will
be able to survive any burnovers that may impact on them.
Explore WA Government Data
Search the full archive in the free dashboard, or query programmatically via API.
Explore more
Government Gazette
Appointments, regulatory notices, planning changes.
Hansard
Debates, questions, speeches and sentiment.
Tabled Papers
Reports and documents tabled in Parliament.
Committees
Committee profiles and recent reports.
Regulations
Subsidiary legislation with filters and summaries.
Bills
Proposed laws and parliamentary progress.
Acts
Current WA legislation and summaries.
Explanatory Memoranda
Bills with EMs (text/PDF) available.
Members
MP profiles, party breakdown and rankings.
Pollie Rankings
Data-driven rankings across 19 categories.
Amendment Chains
Track how schemes and regulations evolve over time.