Festive
fire safety launch
This
morning, in conjunction with the Minister for Fair Trading and the
Emergency Services Minister, firefighters from 1 City of Sydney
Station and I helped to launch festive season safety messages at
Parliament House. It’s a timely reminder for all households to
take extra care during the Christmas season to avoid home fires
caused by overloaded powerpoints, cooking, candles, and unsafe
decorations. Safety materials are available for local
distribution.
Annual
Report 2009/10
The
NSWFB Annual Report 2009/10 has been released, and is available in
electronic format. The report is available on both the intranet
and internet
sites. CDs will also be available shortly. The Annual Report
details the diverse nature of the work that modern firefighters do
today, and I note in my foreword that the name ‘NSW Fire
Brigades’, which was coined in January 1910, could be seen as
not reflecting the diversity and roles of the service 100 years
later.
New
Year’s Eve preparedness
On
Tuesday 23 November, the Community Engagement and Events Division
of the Department of Premier and Cabinet conducted an exercise in
the Government Coordination Centre (GCC) to test the preparedness
of NSW government agencies for New Year’s Eve 2010. The exercise
involved a simulated storm occurring across the greater
Sydney
area just prior to the 9pm fireworks in the CBD. Superintendent
Gordon Boath was our representative in the GCC and Superintendent
Tom Cooper and Station Officer Graham Tait created the necessary
scenarios to test our preparedness. SO Tait used the FireCad
training system to create simulated incidents, then fed them into
the BOSS application to create real time test scenarios. The
scenario was made even more realistic by the involvement of
trainee Communications Operators currently undergoing FireCad
training at
Alexandria
. The results showed the preparedness of all government agencies
was well advanced.
Incident
management training
The
Bushland Urban Interface section, in conjunction with Operational
Commands has piloted a bushfire Incident Management program,
enhancing campaign fire management skills of 34 senior officers
over the last four weeks. The IM program involved officers of the
rank of Inspector and above across the state, and were run with
the assistance of National Parks, SES and the RFS. The program is
aimed at enhancing the skills of senior officers in effectively
managing bushfires on the urban bushland interface, coordinating
multi-agency operations, and educating officers on the complex
challenges that interface incidents pose to the safety of
communities and all those who operate within this environment. The
pilot programs were opened by Assistant Commissioner Mark Whybro,
Director Specialised Operations and Assistant Commissioner Mark
Brown, Director Greater Metropolitan Operations. An added benefit
of the programs were that they tested Fire Control Centres for the
Hunters Hill, Lane Cove,
Willoughby
, Ryde and Bankstown/Hurstville areas.
USAR
training course complete
Recently,
22 firefighters and 2 Special Casualty Access Team (SCAT)
Ambulance Paramedics completed their 4-week Urban Search and
Rescue (USAR) Category 2 rescue technician course. The course
involved a mixture of theory and practical skills in dealing with
complex building collapse scenarios, including the use of advanced
search equipment, tunnelling and shoring, and confined space
rescue. The culmination of the course was a 48-hour exercise at a
purpose built training prop at Milperra in
Sydney
’s south west. Crews worked from a base camp, ate rations, and
worked in shifts as they would at a real incident. To make the
exercise as realistic as possible, firefighters acted as
‘victims’. I was privileged to be asked to be a victim, and
was amazed at the skills displayed by those who located, treated,
then ‘rescued’ me. It took a while for the rescuers to work
out exactly who ‘Burt’ the lawn mowing contractor was, but
thankfully they still rescued me anyway. Congratulations to all of
the instructors and participants on their hard work and
commitment.
Captain
Peter Hinchcliffe AFSM retires after 45 years in Kempsey
Captain
Peter Hinchcliffe AFSM joined the NSWFB in November 1965, and was
appointed to the position of Captain of the Kempsey Fire Brigade
in May 1986. He retired from the NSWFB on Friday 19 November after
45 years of exemplary service, becoming the longest serving member
of 345; the first Deputy Captain to be appointed to that Brigade;
and the third longest Captain in Kempsey’s 114 year history.
During Peter’s service he attended numerous major incidents
including the Clybucca bus crash,
Australia
’s worst ever road accident, as well as major bushfires and
structure fires in the Kempsey area. Last Saturday night, together
with more than 100 well wishers, I attended Peter’s retirement
function, thanked him for his commitment, and wished him well for
a long, happy and healthy retirement.
Pat
Feeney retires after more than 50 years service
On
Friday 19 November, our loyal and long-serving Supervisor -
Employee Services Operations, Pat Feeney retired after serving for
50 years and 9 months. Pat started work with the Board of Fire
Commissioners in February 1960 and worked in various
administrative positions, including: Machine Operator,
Administrative Officer, Staff Supervisor, Systems Operator, Pay
Officer, and Employee Services Officer. Her work has consistently
been of the highest calibre, and she will be remembered for her
outstanding work ethic, skills, and friendliness. As the longest
serving administrative employee of the Brigades, I wish her the
very best in her well earned retirement.
Number
4 on the Flyer
The
week before last I had the rare experience of some free time in my
diary, and decided that it would be good to reacquaint myself with
fire station life for a few hours. My thanks to the crew of the
Flyer at City of
Sydney
for allowing me to sit in the back – their only condition was
that I had to be Number 4, and carry a SCBA and goat bag. It was
quite amusing when a sweating Commissioner in full PPC emerged on
Level 22 of a major city hotel, only to be recognised by the
Director of Security ( a former Police Officer), who offered to
carry the gear for me. I politely refused, as the crew and Station
Officer Dean Gray would never have let me live it down.
A
Triple Zero winner
On
Monday 29 November, Assistant Commissioner Mark Whybro, Director
Specialised Operations, attended a special ceremony in
Canberra
to acknowledge outstanding community safety projects. AC Whybro
represented the national Triple Zero Awareness Work Group, which
developed the Triple Zero Kids' Challenge, an educational online
safety game for primary school-aged children. The game was
presented with a 'Highly Commended' Australian Safer Communities
Award in the category of 'National Significance'. Since its launch
in May 2010, the Kids' Challenge has been an outstanding success,
with over 175,000 visitors to the website
and over 370,000 games played.
Attempt
to circumnavigate the world by fire truck
The
NSWFB provided a unique escort across the
Harbour
Bridge
on Tuesday 23 November. The Rocks Pumper and Woollahra Ladders,
together with a NSW Police Highway Patrol vehicle escorted a
British Fire Service Mercedes pumper known as ‘Martha’ as it
entered
Sydney
on part of its journey around the world. A small group of business
people in the
United Kingdom
are attempting an entry in the Guinness Book Of World Records for
driving a fire engine around the world while raising funds for
cancer research charities and the
UK
’s ‘The Fire Fighters Charity’. Their journey into
Sydney
, complete with the NSWFB and Police escort received extensive
media coverage on Channel 9’s Today Show. They were given a warm
welcome by firefighters at City of
Sydney
, enjoying a sprightly game of volleyball, as well as a cricket
match with 18 Glebe crew. Their journey can be followed on www.followthatfireengine.com
Salvation
Army Christmas Appeal
The
NSWFB has been holding an annual Salvation Army Christmas appeal
for the past 13 years. This is another opportunity for us to help
provide a brighter festive season for those less fortunate or in
difficult circumstances. Donation boxes for toys and
non-perishable goods are located under the Christmas tree at Head
Office in the Level 10 Reception area. I will be presenting your
donations to a representative of the Salvation Army on Thursday 16
December, and thank you for the support you are able to give.
INCIDENTS
Since
the last Commish’s Corner there have been forty-four residential
fires across NSW with eighteen of these attributed to foodstuffs
left unattended. With the coming Christmas season, it’s a good
time to remind the community about the need for extra care in the
kitchen. One of our busiest days in the past fortnight was
Wednesday 24 November, which included a 3rd Alarm fire and eleven
residential fires.
3rd
Alarm fire at Caringbah
Eighty
people had to be evacuated from a block of units in Caringbah on
Wednesday 24 November, and fifteen people were transported to
hospital for treatment of smoke inhalation when a car caught fire
in an underground carpark just after 0100 hours. 45 Miranda was
first on scene within seven minutes of the first call, reported
large volumes of smoke, and requested a 3rd Alarm. Firefighters
and Police worked quickly to evacuate all three levels of the
building. Several people had to be assisted during the evacuation
due to the thick smoke. The fire was contained to the basement
area with one car destroyed, several others damaged and a garage
area extensively damaged. Several residential units sustained
smoke damage and the building sustained extensive damage to its
plumbing which extended into the basement area. Approximately
forty residents had to be relocated due to eighteen units being
unable to be reoccupied. Crews from 45 Miranda, 54 Cronulla, 46
Sutherland, 20 Hurstville, 21 Kogarah, 33
Engadine
, 48 Mortdale, 20 Hurstville, 90 Menai and 9 Hazmat attended the
incident.
Later
the same morning, firefighters were called to another car fire
under a block of units at Carramar. Twenty people were evacuated
from the three level building. The rapid response of firefighters
from 49 Cabramatta and 8
Liverpool
quickly contained the incident without injury or serious damage to
buildings.
Throughout
the same day, another nine residential fires kept fire crews
across the state busy. A house was destroyed at Minto and houses
at Tighes Hill and Mt Druitt sustained fire damage to rooms. Six
of the residential fires were started by cooking at
Glenmore
Park
,
Auburn
, Bellevue Hill, Jamisontown, Mt Pleasant and Punchbowl.
2nd
Alarm fire at Erina
Just
before 1700 hours on Sunday 21 November, the first of numerous
Triple Zero (000) calls were received by Newcastle Comms to a shop
fire at Erina. Crews from 304 Gosford were on scene within seven
minutes and confirmed that a fire had taken hold, producing large
amounts of smoke and threatening to quickly spread to adjoining
shops. Crews worked for over four hours to locate and contain the
seat of the fire. There were fears of wall collapse and the large
amount of smoke in the area forced the evacuation of the Erina
Leagues Club, a nearby tavern and restaurant. Four shops in the
complex were totally destroyed by fire and a nearby building
suffered some smoke and heat damage. The fire appears to have
started in a Christmas decoration shop and is still under
investigation. Crews from 304 Gosford, 459 Terrigal, 509
Wyoming
, 341 Kariong, 228
Berkeley
Vale and 351 Bateau Bay attended the incident.
ASK
THE COMMISSIONER
Q.
will there be a new helmet rolled out with the new PPC?
A.
No.
However, we are actively looking at new style helmets (‘jet
style’) for the future.
Q.
Two
and a half years after funding was announced for a new Aerial
Pumper at 47 Reveseby, it has not arrived. Staff have been advised
that Revesby has now been dropped to No. 3 on the priority list
for a new aerial pumper. Is this true? If so, what criteria were
used to relegate 47 station? If it is not true, when can the new
aerial pumper be expected?
A.
Funding
for a replacement aerial pumper for Revesby was approved in the
2008/09 budget and funding for two additional units (
Horningsea
Park
and Huntingwood) was approved the year before. All three units
are being built at this time and the 1st unit is expected to be
delivered in early 2011 with the other two to follow within 6
months. The build process was delayed due to issues with the
Telesqurt Manufacturer in the
USA
. The current Revesby Aerial Pumper is having a mid-life major
inspection and refurbishment. It makes good sense to place this
unit back in service at Revesby to then allow the mid-life refit
to be undertaken on the Aerial Pumper from
Horningsea
Park
when it is replaced with the new unit. The delivery order of new
appliances is continually reviewed inline with operational
requirements and the logistics of managing and maintaining a
large fleet of specialist vehicles.
Q.
Has the 2009 Victoria Bushfire Pin been approved for wearing on
NSWFB uniforms, if so, where should be placed?
A.:
No.
The 2009 Victoria Bushfire pin is a commemorative pin and was
never intended to be worn as a part of our uniform as would a
medal. However, if wearing dress uniform it may be worn as a tie
tack (pin) at a member’s discretion.
Q.
Why
haven’t the new type 2 appliances been fitted with BA seats?
A.
Class
2 appliances are based on Isuzu crew cabins which do not have
sufficient rear cabin depth to allow the fitting of BA seats and
maintain acceptable rear cabin leg room. Reducing the rear cabin
space by fitting only 2 BA seats as suggested would not change
this as the issue is related to depth, not the width of the
cabin.
Q.
With
the new over-trousers being a ‘stand alone’ protective
garment, will consideration now be given to the wearing of shorts
for station wear? During summer, work quality (King Gee or
similar) shorts would be preferable to the rather heavy and hot
Duty Wear Trousers.
A.
The
revised AS/NZ 4967, 2009 mandates that the structural trousers
will be a stand alone garment ie it will provide full protection
to direct flame and radiated heat without the requirement for
any additional garments to be worn underneath. Therefore the
issue of what garment should be worn under the new structural
trouser is being investigated by EDU. One of the options being
considered is the issue of a lightweight short that can be worn
under both duty wear trousers and the structural trouser. A
final decision will be made on this issue after consultation
with key stakeholders including the FBEU. There is no intention
to issue a short in lieu of the current duty wear trousers. In
relation to duty wear trousers a new lighter garment that could
still be worn at bushfires is being investigated.
Q.
Is
there any news of the retained award, and review of the retainer
payment? Paying the retained firefighter as per his or her
availability based on hour available to respond? Currently, the
NSWFB is getting the retained cheaply, but the big picture is,
this must be costing a fortune to train retained, fit them with
PPE, and in a short term, they chuck it in, and resign, due to the
big commitment and such a low pay rate.
A.
This
matter as well as others is currently being discussed by the
Retained Working Group, which has representation from retained
stations, Industrial Relations, Health and Safety Branch and the
FBEU. The matters relating to the Retained system are not simple
and it will take a combination of reforms to resolve. Also, any
issues surrounding Awards must be approached consultatively with
the FBEU, or dealt with formally in the Industrial Relations
Commission. Please forward constructive suggestions to Assistant
Commissioner Jim Hamilton, Director Regional Operations for
consideration by the Retained Working Group.
COMMISH’S
CORNER