COMMISSIONER'S BUSINESS
State Emergency Management Committee Chair retires
At yesterday's SEMC meeting, Minister Kelly visited to pay tribute to the retiring chair, Major General Brian (Hori) Howard. Hori, a highly decorated soldier, retired from the Army in 1989 to become Director General of the State Emergency Service (SES). In 2001, he retired from that position, but continued as SEMC chair. Hori's no-nonsense practical approach has been a breath of fresh air in the Australian emergency management community, and he has always been a strong supporter of the NSWFB. I wish him well in his retirement. The Minister also announced yesterday that I will assume the position of SEMC chair pending a review of the position.
National UFU Conference
On Wednesday, together with Neil Bibby, Chief Executive Officer of the Victorian Country Fire Authority, I spoke at the National Conference of the United Firefighters Union of Australia. The session was interactive, with many strategic issues raised by delegates from around Australia. Neil and I focussed on the need for unions and management to recognise that, while there will always be differences of opinion and sometimes disputes, we need to work in partnership to ensure that fire services remain viable and provide interesting, well-paid jobs for all employees. Taking on new roles and engaging with communities is vital to our existence, although the difficulties faced by unions in having productivity recognised and recompensed was high on the agenda.
Welcome to new recruit graduates
Today 22 new firefighters were welcomed to the ranks of the NSWFB at a recruit graduation ceremony at the Training College. They will soon be taking up positions at stations across Sydney. Please make them feel welcome.
New Director Business Systems & Information Technology
Mr Richard Host has accepted the new position of Director Business Systems and Information Technology and will start with the NSWFB on 3 January. Richard comes to us from Coca-Cola Amatil where he has been a senior IT executive, leading their Australasian technology teams.
Richard brings a broad range of postgraduate tertiary qualifications and management skills to the NSWFB. This includes experience in deploying large-scale infield wireless systems and high-speed data networks which will be especially valuable to the NSWFB. Richard is excited about joining the NSWFB and we look forward to welcoming him in a few weeks.
I would like to take this opportunity to thank Carmel Donnelly and John Shenstone who have ably led the BSIT area for several years. Carmel and John have done an excellent job, and I am indebted to them.
OPERATIONAL UPDATE
New Operations Bulletin
Operations Bulletin 2005/08, Safe Working with Hydraulic Rescue Tools, detailing safe work practices that must be followed using these tools at emergency incidents and training exercises, can be accessed from the State Operations page on the intranet .
New Safety Bulletin
Safety Bulletin 2005/8, Fire/Rescue Ladder Wheels, which identifies and addresses a potential safety issue involving the wheels fitted to the 10.5m, 8.5m and 8m fire/rescue ladders, can be accessed from the State Operations page on the intranet .
Hazmat at Orange
Last Sunday and Monday (4 and 5 December), over 70 firefighters worked through the night to contain a serious spill of 100 litres of Isocyanate inside a factory at Orange. The Hazmat incident lasted for over 22 hours and crews from 412 Orange, 216 Bathurst, 105 Kelso, 284 Delroy, 280 Dubbo and 363 Lithgow were called in to assist. Logistical and technical support was provided by 343 Katoomba and the Hazardous Materials Unit at Greenacre. Incident Control was managed by Zone West 3 Relieving Operational Commander Steve Bearman and Zone Commander Tony Grant who sourced information from factory management and chemical databases to determine the best method for controlling the incident. Crews wearing fully encapsulated suits and self contained breathing apparatus worked to reclaim the spilled product, and then to absorb residual Isocyanate, much of which had seeped under factory machinery.
Coffs Harbour factory fire
On Wednesday night the Coffs Harbour, Sawtell and Woolgoolga brigades battled a major factory fire at Coffs Harbour. Upon arrival, the Captain of 257 station was confronted with a major fire in a complex of factory units 60m x 15m. Fast work by firefighters limited fire spread, but not before one unit was destroyed. During the fire command passed to the Inspector from North 5, who praised the excellent work by firefighters.
RUMOUR MILL
Rumour: Is it true that the RFS will be delivering their Firewise for Kids program to all schools in NSW?
Response: An article was published in the Saturday Telegraph on 3 December 2005 which has caused some concern among NSWFB firefighters. This article stated that the RFS was working with the “Day of Difference Foundation”, to deliver education programs to year 3 school children throughout the state. Risk Management contacted the RFS on Monday and was informed that $10,000 had been allocated from the “Day of Difference Foundation” to update their Firewise for Kids program. The RFS advised that there is no intention to deliver this program to all schools throughout NSW.
Assistant Commissioner Ken Thompson and Chief Superintendent Jim Smith from the Risk Management Directorate met with Assistant Commissioner Rob Rogers from the RFS this week to discuss several matters relating to community safety and public education. The NSWFB and RFS have agreed to meet early in the new year to develop a framework to enable both organisations to work together to continue to deliver consistent coordinated messages to schools across NSW.
Rumour: Is it true that the Retained Firefighters' retainer is going to be increased? Also, is it true that retained firefighters will be financially compensated for using their own phones to access the Retained Firefighter Telephone Alerting System (RTAS)?
Response: No increases are contemplated for the Retained Firefighters retainer. The matter of compensation for Retained Firefighters using the RTAS system is being discussed with the Fire Brigade Employees Union. The size of any payment, the period over which it is paid, and the method of payment, are yet to be finalised.
NEWS IN BRIEF
Festive fire season materials
Christmas is just around the corner and it's an ideal time to remind the community about festive season fire safety. Materials, including a template media release, media tips and fact sheet, are available on the intranet to help stations spread the word through local media outlets. You may consider inviting the local paper down to take a photo of your crew safely setting up Christmas lights. Spreading the festive season fire safety message is a great way to keep your local community safe this Christmas.
Summer fire safety liftout
This coming weekend, the Sunday Telegraph will contain a 4 page lift out about fire safety. While the main thrust of the lift out will be about the bushfire season, the NSWFB will feature strongly. A number of key NSWFB safety messages will be communicated and an advertisement will highlight the need to call 000 in emergencies. The advertisement will give you a taste of a broader NSWFB campaign which will be outlined next week. Watch this space.
Senior officer changes
Inspector Rob Lindsay has been appointed as the Superintendent for Zone N4, and takes up the Zone Commander post today after acting in the position for 10 months this year. Superintendent Steve Pearce will shortly be returning to Sydney from Zone West 5 Tamworth and Superintendent Mark Brown will return from his secondment to Western Australia late in January.
Captain Eric Woolley AFSM retires
On Saturday, my wife Erris and I, together with John and Val Benson and dozens of other well-wishers, paid tribute to Captain Eric Woolley AFSM of Nowra Brigade. Eric and Cynthia Woolley have been stalwarts of the Championships Association, attending 38 state competitions over the last 38 years. Eric, an electronics technician, designed and built the competition timing devices. In Nowra he built a Firefighter paging system many years ago, as well as an inter-agency two-way radio system. Cynthia has always been at Eric's side, even driving him to fires in the small hours of the morning. They will be sorely missed, but I am sure will maintain their association with championships. While in Nowra I also had the opportunity to visit “E” Platoon at 405 station.
St Andrews zone office opening
The new zone office at St Andrews Fire Station was opened by the Member for Campbelltown, Graham West, today. The $236,000 office replaces the office at the old Liverpool Fire Station and will be the management headquarters for Zone W6. Congratulations to everyone involved in the project.
ComSafe web page
Comsafe now has links on both the NSWFB intranet home page (on the Frequently Requested list) and also within Station Portal. By visiting the site, you'll be able to familiarise yourself with ComSafe, the NSWFB's commercial business unit. As well as providing emergency management training to commercial, industrial, health care and emergency service organisations, ComSafe can act as the initial contact point for the commercial provision of any NSWFB skill or service. Refer public enquiries for ComSafe to the free call number 1800 78 78 48.
New book highlights our work in Banda Aceh
A new book, ‘Angels of Aceh' by Sophie York, highlights the work of Greg Watson and Bruce Cameron, who used their rescue skills to assess buildings after the earthquake, repaired equipment and provided lighting and hygiene to doctors and nursing staff. The book describes the harsh conditions encountered by the Combined Australian Surgical Team, the 25 earth tremors that occurred while in Aceh, and the interaction with the local people.
Of particular interest is the question first asked by the doctors, “Why are we taking firefighters on a medical mission?” Early in the deployment, they realised they couldn't do the work required without the expertise of the NSWFB.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Joint emergency services band concert
This Sunday, 11 December, the first ever joint concert of the bands of the NSWFB, NSW Ambulance Service and NSW Police will be held at Sydney Town Hall. All proceeds will support Special Olympics NSW, the major NSW Police charity, which provides year-round access to sporting facilities and specialised coaching to people with an intellectual disability. For more information or to find out where to buy tickets, see the intranet.
COMMISH’S CORNER
Commissioner’s e-mail: Commissioner@fire.nsw.gov.au
Cora Sarmiento, Commish’s PA: 9265 2930
PACSU: fax 9265 2882
Commish’s Corner Rumour Mill: 9265 2627
To contribute a story, please contact Public Affairs Officers:
(West) 9265 2613, (South) 9265 2802 or (North) 9265 2631
Cut off for submissions is 10:00am Thursday