Passing
of Bill Beare
It is with great
sadness that I report the passing of Mr Bill Beare,
former Secretary of the Board of Fire Commissioners. Bill started work
as a junior clerk in 1940 with the former Board, and worked his way to
the top administrative position of the Brigade, being appointed as
Board Secretary in 1974. Bill held this position until his retirement
in July 1982. After his retirement Bill maintained a keen interest in
the Brigade and attended many Zone and State Firefighter Championships
up until last year when his health started to fail. Plans were being
made to transport Bill to the State Championships later this year, and
his death has come as a terrible shock to his many friends.
Bill was a true
member of the NSWFB family. His place of birth was the quarters above
the (now closed) Annandale Fire Station, and his home address given
when he joined the Brigade in 1940 was
213 Castlereagh Street
- Fire Brigade Headquarters. His father, William Beare,
was NSWFB Chief Officer from 1944 to 1947. His grandfather John Beare
was a member of the Board of the forerunner of the NSWFB, the
Metropolitan Fire Brigade, from 1890 to 1900. Rest in peace Bill, your
huge contribution and friendship will long be remembered.
Marine
firefighting - correction
It was recently
reported in CC that the crew on Marine 1 responded to help extinguish
a 2nd Alarm fire on a barge at Balmain. The crew at 3 The
Rocks 'B' Platoon e-mailed me pointing out that not only did they
arrive on the firefighting tug Ted Noffs
16 minutes prior to Marine 1 and get to work with the main monitor,
but a few shifts earlier had also responded on a fire tug to a 2nd
Alarm boat fire at The Spit near Manly. Well done No. 3 and my
apologies!
World
Youth Day 2008
From 13-21 July,
Sydney
played host to World Youth Day 2008 (WYD08) � a gathering of
young Catholics which attracted more than 500 000 visitors to the city
including 120 000 international visitors. It also marked Pope
Benedict XVI�s first visit to
Australia
. The NSWFB Special Events Planning and Coordination Team under Supt
John Bedford worked closely with the NSW Police WYD Security Command,
WYD Coordination Authority and other State and Commonwealth agencies
for 18 months prior to the event and arranged fire safety inspections
at 750 schools which were to accommodate WYD08 pilgrims. More than 460
personnel were directly involved at sites during the week-long event,
and eight stations operated out of 1 City of
Sydney
. Earlier this week, I received a letter from NSW Premier Morris Iemma
thanking the NSWFB for its contribution to the success of WYD08. I
would like to congratulate all NSWFB personnel involved in the event
� your professionalism and hard work contributed to making this
major event incident-free. Incidentally, firefighters at 71 Castle
Hill advised me when I visited their station that one of their most
important duties was to rescue �Bella� the cat from the
top of a wall. Bella kept
His Holiness company while he was at
Kenthurst.
Reduced
fire risk cigarettes
I am pleased to
announce that the Federal Minister for Competition Policy and
Consumer Affairs, Chris Bowen, has agreed to introduce a mandatory
product safety standard, under the Trade Practices Act, for reduced
fire risk cigarettes � a move that will save hundreds of lives
each year. The NSWFB has been the driving force behind the push for
the introduction of reduced fire risk cigarettes in Australia and I
congratulate everyone who has worked so hard on this issue
particularly CSupt Jim Smith, DCom
Ken Thompson, ACom Murray Kear, Nick
Nicolopolous, and the former Director of Strategy and Planning, Carmel
Donnelly. It is expected that the new mandatory standard will be
introduced in the second half of 2008 with an 18 month lead time for
tobacco companies, and it will be supported by a product safety
awareness campaign.
Farewell
to NSWFB's first accelerant detection dog
The NSWFB�s
first accelerant detection dog, Kova,
recently passed away. Kova started his
career with the NSWFB in 1996, retiring in 2000 to spend his
retirement in the care of Insp Bob Alexander and his wife Rene. Kova
was an exceptional dog and helped to establish the accelerant
detection dogs as a vital part of the NSWFB�s
fire investigation resources.
5th
Alarm shopping centre fire in Wentworthville
At 1647 hours on
Monday
21 July, 57
Wentworthville and 72 Merrylands responded to numerous 000 calls and
an AFA to a fire in the Wentworthville Shopping Complex in
Dunmore St
, Wentworthville. On arrival at 1650 hours SO Andrew Barrett from 57
Wentworthville discovered a very intense fire in the loading dock area
and in a discount shop. With the assistance of the crew from 72
Merrylands they mounted an aggressive internal fire attack and SO
Barrett immediately requested a 2nd Alarm. Crews were faced
with a very intense and hot fire fuelled by large amounts of stock
which was hindering efforts to contain the fire. At 1716 hours Insp
Murray West, Duty Commander MW2, requested a 4th Alarm,
with the fire eventually upgraded to a 5th Alarm.
Eventually crews from 14 stations were called upon to assist during
firefighting operations and at the fire duty. By 2047 the fire was
under control. FIRU and NSW Police are still investigating the cause
of the fire.
2nd
Alarm House fire at Lapston
At 1029 hours on
Wednesday 9 July, 301 Glenbrook was responded to a reported house
alight in Hume Rd, Lapstone, followed by 102 Regentville at 1031
hours. After sending a message at 1034 reporting large volumes of
smoke visible en-route, 102 Regentville arrived at 1040 hours to find
a two level house, brick and tile about 10m x 15m well alight, with
flames through the roof. SO Harold Nasko
and his crew quickly mounted an aggressive offensive attack. Crews
from 301 Glenbrook, 98 Cranebrook, 86 Penrith, and 445 Springwood all
responded and helped prevent the fire from spreading to adjoining
exposed homes. No-one was injured and residents from neighbouring
houses were safely evacuated. The crews had the fire under control by
1100 hours with 85 per cent of the structure damaged. Insp Garry Tye,
Duty Commander MW3, attended the incident along with staff from FIRU,
and acknowledged the excellent job performed by all the crews.
2nd
Alarm house fire at Bowral
At 2106 hours on
Wednesday 23 July, crews from 234 Bowral and 385 Mittagong responded
to a reported house fire at
Harley St
, Bowral. Upon arrival, Capt John Arnott and his crew were confronted
with a fierce fire in a 50m x 20m two-storey brick and iron house.
Firefighters were hampered by poor water supply and together with a 2nd
Alarm, called for a bulk water carrier from the RFS to assist them.
Additional crews from 234 and 385 responded, as well as RFS units and
378 Mittagong. Insp Graham Jarrett, Acting Duty Commander RS2,
attended along with SO Kieran Britt from 234 Bowral. By 2214 hours
crews had the fire under control using 10 lines of 38mm hose, however
more than 90 per cent of the house had been destroyed. Thankfully,
no-one was inside the house at the time of the fire. This incident
highlights the excellent working relationship we have with our
colleagues in the RFS.
RUMOUR
MILL
Rumour:
Is it true that the wet hose basket on the new Scania Type 3 pumpers
is less than half the size of the tray on the old Firepac/Varley/Scania
pumpers? If true, how is hose in excess of the single length that will
fit in the smaller tray be transported back to the station?
Response:
The
wet hose basket is actually bigger in capacity on the new Class 3. The
basket does not extend across the rear of the whole truck but is wider
and deeper. The wet hose basket is designed to carry eight lengths of
70mm rolled hose. The hose must be rolled as is stated in the
vehicles� recommended practice. Hose that doesn't fit in the
basket can be stowed back in the pockets where it is normally kept.
Rumour:
Is it true the NSWFB has begun purchasing the imported Toyota Kluger
SUV rather than the equivalent Australian-made Ford territory SUV? If
true, isn't this a breach of the Aust/NZ Government Procurement
Agreement and the NSW Government Procurement Policy's "Buy
Australian" requirements considering the vehicles are almost
identical in price and specification?
Response:
As
with other NSW Government departments, the NSWFB is required to
purchase those vehicles that are listed under Government Contract. To
be on the Government Contract, the vehicles must qualify by way of
meeting certain requirements such as expected whole-of-life costs,
emissions, demand for the category and vehicle models already
available within the particular segment. The Contract is managed by
the NSW Department of Commerce. The NSWFB decision to choose the
Kluger over the
Ford
Territory
is based on
emission output and whole-of-life costs.
Rumour:
Is it true that City of
Sydney Fire Station
is getting heavy rescue?
Response: The
City of
Sydney
appliance is stowed with a full heavy rescue inventory and is
accredited by the State Rescue Board as a Secondary Rescue Unit. There
are no known plans for any changes in accreditation by the Board
affecting City of
Sydney
.
Rumour:
Is it true that all major district stations are losing their district
truck, and they will be operated from Greenacre at some stage?
Response: The
Metropolitan Area Commanders recently submitted a paper reviewing the
role, location and crewing of the Logistic Trucks and the submission
is still being considered. No recommendations have been made to me and
the
Union
will need to be fully consulted if any changes are proposed.
Rumour:
Is
it true that the Commissioner is investigating the possibility of
Ambulance Rescue operators joining the NSWFB as a solution to the
recommendation handed down by a Parliamentary Committee?
Response: One
of the recommendations of the Review into the performance of the
Ambulance Service of NSW was that ASNSW should withdraw from direct
provision of rescue services and pass
these responsibilities to the NSWFB. The NSW Minister for
Health has indicated that consultation will take place with
stakeholders as soon as possible in relation to this recommendation.
The NSWFB has yet to be approached on the matter, and has therefore
neither been asked nor have we formally suggested a possible transfer.
However if the Government decides to act on the recommendation, all
options will be considered.
INCIDENTS
TRUenergy
Power Station, Yallah
Eight
tonnes of lime was hot and getting hotter at Bluescope Steel
EVENTS
NSWFB
attends Careers Expo in Broken Hill
Firefighter�s
daughter helps Doonside
NSWFB
donates hoses for Taronga�s elephant playtime
Broken
Hill Stations feature highly in NAIDOC week celebrations
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 to the intranet, please contact Public
Affairs Officers: (West) 9265 2613, (South) 9265 2802 or
(North) 9265 2631