The State Emergency Management Committee, in consultation with Western Australian Farmers Federation, the Association of Bush Fire Brigades, the Contractors Association of WA, and the Forest Industries Federation of WA, to establish systems for the voluntary registration of: · farmer firefighting units; · contractor firefighting resources; and · forestry industry brigades.

Resourcing models appropriate to local needs, including fire risk and remoteness

A unified and integrated fire sector across the whole fire hazard

IAP formats and processes appropriate to the nature of the emergency response.

Resolve reoccurring issues with systems and processes

DFES should increase and maintain urban interface bushfire skills and expertise. Appointments to senior roles within the agency should include people with experience and credibility in bushfire firefighting and management.

In due course, acts of bravery are considered and recommendations for awards are submitted, including commendations for the delivery of First Aid.

St John Ambulance should build on its regionalisation model and improve engagement with local services in the Kimberley and Pilbara regions

St John Ambulance should explore opportunities for extending the community paramedic model to other areas of identified need

Western Australia Health should develop criteria with St John Ambulance for the allocation of paramedics across the state

Western Australia Health should re-engage with St John Ambulance at a senior level to address strategic and complex issues including long term solutions to ramping

I recommend that BPC establish an onshore presence as recommended by Lieutenant Commander Livingstone. 

I recommend that the Christmas Island VMRS be given autonomy to maintain operational readiness for the VMRS rescue vessel(s) and an appropriate budget be provided to allow this to take place. 

The Department of Environment and Conservation review the utility of its current regional model in terms of the capability of operational centres such as Kirup to service major fire activity on land proximate to the rural urban area (this recommendation should also be considered in the context of Recommendation 5).

The Ministers for Emergency Services, Environment and Police request their departments to place some of their staff and resources providing trauma-related services in regional Western Australia.

The Fire and Emergency Services Authority, Department of Environment and Conservation and Western Australia Police explore the usefulness of using retired staff as mentors or peer supporters, either directly employed or through a suitable nongovernment organisation.

The State’s emergency response agencies should offer exit interviews to all of their staff and volunteers and use the information they gather to improve their trauma management procedures.

The Minister for Emergency Services and the Minister for Police provide additional resources so that the Fire and Emergency Services Authority and the Western Australia Police can at least double their number of peer support officers, with an aim to increase the number in regional areas of the State.

Tourism WA must give specific regard as to whether land use approvals need to be sought, particularly from Department of Regional Development and Lands, when conducting due diligence for event sponsorship proposals that require sign off by both departments.

Department of Regional Development and Lands and Department of Environment and Conservation should consider how their respective land use approval processes can incorporate the input of Local Emergency Management Committees (LEMCs) as part of risk assessments for high risk events and adventure sport activities.

There would be benefit in progressively aligning the geographic boundaries of each of the agencies and seeking to co-locate their headquarters within those boundaries.

The State Government restructure the Fire and Emergency Services Authority as a Department. 22 As part of this restructure, Emergency Management Western Australia should either be: 1. clearly separated from the fire and emergency services response function (see figure 2); or 2. moved to the Department of the Premier and Cabinet (see figures 3 and 4) or 3. moved to the Attorney-General’s department (see figures 3 and 5).

Main Roads Western Australia undertake more frequent examinations of its bridges located in areas prone to bushfire and ensure that the risk posed to loss of infrastructure in a fire is understood by local authorities.

The State Government mandate that the title deeds for relevant properties be amended to indicate if the property is in a declared bushfire prone area.

State and locals governments: a) recognise that regardless of future declarations of bushfire prone areas, the existing planning and building problems in the Perth Hills related to bushfire risk will persist; b) urge residents in these areas to retrofit their homes and evaporative air conditioners in compliance with AS 3959 - 2009; c) examine options to retrospectively bring these areas into compliance with Planning for Bushfire Protection Guidelines.

The Fire and Emergency Services Authority work in partnership with the Real Estate Institute of Western Australia to develop a package of information for new residents moving into bushfire prone areas, and a process to ensure this information is provided through real estate agents.

The State Government transfer responsibility for declaring bushfire prone areas from local government to the Western Australian Planning Commission. The Western Australian Planning Commission should urgently assess those areas that should be declared bushfire prone.

The Fire and Emergency Services Authority and local governments ensure that Community Emergency Service Managers are physically based in local government.

The DEC corporate statement should affirm a strong commitment to fire management.

A DEC fire management staff succession plan would minimise the loss of core fire management skills and experience in the future and provide a planned approach to development of prospective fire management staff.

It is sensible that, in considering planning development proposals on land adjacent to the DEC estate, that development authorities invite comment from DEC on the fire management consequences of development proposals.

FESA identifies and documents its information requirements for end-to-end information exchange and then assess the adequacy of current systems to meet these information requirements.

FESA establishes a process (and associated systems and policies) to mobilise staff to an incident, incorporating pre-formed multi-agency Incident Management Teams. The development of Incident Management Teams should align with the principles of seamless and integrated escalation of command and control arrangements, and be based on a whole of capability approach (people, organisations, systems, training, procedures etc.).

That FESA assess the cost and other implications of proposed changes to bushfire prone zone declarations which would allow the whole State to be declared bushfire prone.

The role of ‘BFB Task Force Liaison’ be defined and appropriately trained personnel be provided by the HMA (possibly from support brigades) to facilitate brigade movements on and off the fire ground.

Transport plans for BFB resources should be prepared by the Ground Support Unit in close liaison with FESA who will liaise with the home jurisdictions of the brigades. Moving personnel whilst leaving the equipment at the fire ground staging areas is preferred to moving equipment in and out with every shift.

The secondment of a resource person(s) to an affected local authority to support the work of that authority in its response to a natural disaster be effected.

All members of the Board be selected for their interest in and experience and knowledge of matters directly associated with bush fire control and not merely as representatives of particular organisations, that the Chairman of the Board be appointed by the Governor instead of being an ex officio appointment of another forester, a member of the timber industry, a police officer and a person with a sound knowledge of weather and its effect upon fire behaviour. 

The relative seniority of bush fire control officers be determined with a view to appointing group leaders as chief bush fire control officers. The Shire Clerk should generally be a liaison bush fire control officer rather than a chief fire control officer.

The State Emergency Service be used to meet any additional needs but that as far as possible, requests for assistance be directed in the first instance to the Bush Fires Board or at least referred to that Board by the State Emergency Service for advice before action is taken.

Local authorities select bush fire control officers for their knowledge and experience of bush fires and their qualities of leadership and that as far as practicable, they be captains of bush fire brigades so that the person issuing the permit to burn has the responsibility of extinguishing the fire if it escapes. 

The management of all National Parks in the State be concentrated under one authority to ensure co-ordination in administration and protective measures.

That care be exercised in recommending the application of emergency bush fire periods so that they will not be applied to districts where their application is unnecessary.

A committee be formed and provided with the finance necessary to enable it to supplement the activities of the local bush fire brigades in districts in the far south-west of the State where ratable values are particularly low and the proportion of Crown lands high, and that the Forests Department be authorised to give approval for control burning of Crown lands throughout the State by bushfire brigades within two miles of a State Forest and that outside this distance the Bush Fires Board through its wardens have similar authority.

Before the bush fire season starts, the Minister on the recommendation of the Board nominate a person and a deputy person who will be instructed to take charge of fire fighting operations in each district should a dangerous fire occur and render such an appointment advisable.

The Forests Department direct more staff to the planning and co-ordination of its bush fire control organisation so that emergency conditions can be met immediately by ample reserves of labour and equipment and that co-ordination between the Department, the local authority, sawmills and other sources of man-power and equipment in and around forestry districts is as complete as possible. This particularly includes co-operative protective burning around the boundaries of forest areas.

The Bush Fires Board appoint a Standing Committee of about six of its members, all of whom are likely to be available at any time during the bush fire season to meet and take executive action as necessary.

All local authorities form advisory committees of persons from bush fire brigades and of bush fire control officers to plan co-operation in effort and co-ordination between brigades, to group brigades under brigade group officers and to advise the local authority upon all matters of fire control, including the planning of the district firebreak layout and prosecuting for breaches of the Bush Fires Act.