❓ Question regarding specific dates for the arrival of firefighting resources to various locations in the South West region, followed by a heated exchange about the Albany fire incident and the safety of firefighting equipment.
AnsweredQoN 655Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
FIREFIGHTING RESOURCES — SOUTH WEST REGION
655. Mr M.P. MURRAY to the Minister for Emergency
Services:
I have a supplementary question.
Further to what the minister said, will he undertake to give a definite date
for the arrival of this vehicle to Preston Beach; and also for appliances to
those brigades in Manjimup, Gosnells, Victoria Plains and Esperance so that
they too can understand what they will do this summer?
655. Mr M.P. MURRAY to the Minister for Emergency
Services:
I have a supplementary question.
Further to what the minister said, will he undertake to give a definite date
for the arrival of this vehicle to Preston Beach; and also for appliances to
those brigades in Manjimup, Gosnells, Victoria Plains and Esperance so that
they too can understand what they will do this summer?
AnswerView source ↗
Member for Collie–Preston, I
think the thing we have to understand is that those brigades were receiving
replacement appliances. The appliances they have while we plan to replace, and
will replace them, will still be there, so they will still have the capacity to
fight fires in their local areas. They are not devoid of firefighting capacity.
Mr
M.P. Murray : Just remember what happened in Albany because of old gear!
Just remember that.
Mr
T.R. BUSWELL : I think you need to be very, very careful, member for Collie–Preston,
when you try to speculate on events surrounding very serious injuries that
occurred to a firefighter. We are conducting a review of Albany —
Mr
M.P. Murray : Don't make promises you're not keeping.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
For the member for Collie–Preston to come into this place and point his
finger and insinuate that the cause of the problem in Albany was an old vehicle
is very premature. It is very premature. What happened there was terrible, and
we will find out what led to that. I had a meeting at Wooroloo with the
volunteer brigades from the Shire of Mundaring the other day, and we discussed
some issues that they have with the safety of their cabs. We will look at those
issues because we simply have to. This is part of the constant evolution of how
we train and resource people to fight fires. I just want to make two very clear
points. Those sorts of statements are incredibly irresponsible —
Several members interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Order! Member for Victoria Park, I formally call you to order for
the first time today. I think everybody in this place recognises the
seriousness of what occurred in Albany several weeks ago, and I would hope that
everybody in this place is sensitive to that issue. Minister, you have been
asked a question on a vehicle, and I am asking you to complete that answer.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I
will, thanks, Mr Speaker, and I will get that information. I think it is
important and appropriate information. But I again say that this fire season
promises to be a very, very challenging fire season. All the indicators are, as
anyone who travels through the bush or lives in the bush would know, especially
in the south west, that the bush is dry.
Mr
B.S. Wyatt : The great southern.
Mr
T.R. BUSWELL : It is dry in the great southern. It is dry in the south west.
It is dry across the metropolitan area. Mundaring is on the verge of ceasing
controlled burns, because controlled burns in October are starting to crown;
that is when the fire goes up into the top of the trees. That means we cannot
have a controlled burn, so we have some big challenges. These firefighters—whether
they are professional; employees of the Department of Environment and
Conservation, as were the two ladies who were injured in Albany; or volunteers—are
trained, when they get caught in the circumstance of a fire coming towards
them, to sit in their vehicle and to use their fire rugs or fire blankets to
protect themselves. We have to do everything we can, and we will do everything
we can, to make sure that they have confidence to follow through on the
training that they receive. If there are learnings to be taken, which I am
absolutely sure there will be from Albany, we will take those learnings and we
will act on them.
I just want to make this
observation. I will make sure that I get that information to the member and to
those brigades. I might not be able to get it today, but I will make sure I get
that information because it is important information.
I just want to close on another
point. Fires are of their nature in a dynamic, volatile environment. I believe
that from just about every single fire event that we attend we can learn
something new so that we do something better next time. The commitment that
this government gives is that we will have the processes in place to make sure
that where there are those learnings to be had, we will take those learnings and
we will apply them practically to support our firefighters to protect
communities, to protect people and to help them protect themselves.
think the thing we have to understand is that those brigades were receiving
replacement appliances. The appliances they have while we plan to replace, and
will replace them, will still be there, so they will still have the capacity to
fight fires in their local areas. They are not devoid of firefighting capacity.
Mr
M.P. Murray : Just remember what happened in Albany because of old gear!
Just remember that.
Mr
T.R. BUSWELL : I think you need to be very, very careful, member for Collie–Preston,
when you try to speculate on events surrounding very serious injuries that
occurred to a firefighter. We are conducting a review of Albany —
Mr
M.P. Murray : Don't make promises you're not keeping.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
For the member for Collie–Preston to come into this place and point his
finger and insinuate that the cause of the problem in Albany was an old vehicle
is very premature. It is very premature. What happened there was terrible, and
we will find out what led to that. I had a meeting at Wooroloo with the
volunteer brigades from the Shire of Mundaring the other day, and we discussed
some issues that they have with the safety of their cabs. We will look at those
issues because we simply have to. This is part of the constant evolution of how
we train and resource people to fight fires. I just want to make two very clear
points. Those sorts of statements are incredibly irresponsible —
Several members interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Order! Member for Victoria Park, I formally call you to order for
the first time today. I think everybody in this place recognises the
seriousness of what occurred in Albany several weeks ago, and I would hope that
everybody in this place is sensitive to that issue. Minister, you have been
asked a question on a vehicle, and I am asking you to complete that answer.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I
will, thanks, Mr Speaker, and I will get that information. I think it is
important and appropriate information. But I again say that this fire season
promises to be a very, very challenging fire season. All the indicators are, as
anyone who travels through the bush or lives in the bush would know, especially
in the south west, that the bush is dry.
Mr
B.S. Wyatt : The great southern.
Mr
T.R. BUSWELL : It is dry in the great southern. It is dry in the south west.
It is dry across the metropolitan area. Mundaring is on the verge of ceasing
controlled burns, because controlled burns in October are starting to crown;
that is when the fire goes up into the top of the trees. That means we cannot
have a controlled burn, so we have some big challenges. These firefighters—whether
they are professional; employees of the Department of Environment and
Conservation, as were the two ladies who were injured in Albany; or volunteers—are
trained, when they get caught in the circumstance of a fire coming towards
them, to sit in their vehicle and to use their fire rugs or fire blankets to
protect themselves. We have to do everything we can, and we will do everything
we can, to make sure that they have confidence to follow through on the
training that they receive. If there are learnings to be taken, which I am
absolutely sure there will be from Albany, we will take those learnings and we
will act on them.
I just want to make this
observation. I will make sure that I get that information to the member and to
those brigades. I might not be able to get it today, but I will make sure I get
that information because it is important information.
I just want to close on another
point. Fires are of their nature in a dynamic, volatile environment. I believe
that from just about every single fire event that we attend we can learn
something new so that we do something better next time. The commitment that
this government gives is that we will have the processes in place to make sure
that where there are those learnings to be had, we will take those learnings and
we will apply them practically to support our firefighters to protect
communities, to protect people and to help them protect themselves.
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