Annual Report 2004-05 2004-2005 Issn 1442-8288
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ANNUAL REPORT 2004-05 2004-2005 ISSN 1442-8288 GLOSSARY OF TERMS 4 HIGHLIGHTS 5 FESA CHAIR’S REPORT 6 FESA CEO’S REPORT 8 SPECIAL REPORT – inter-operable emergency radio communications 11 ABOUT FESA 13 MEETING STATE GOVERNMENT OBJECTIVES 18 MEETING KEY FESA OBJECTIVES 20 REPORT ON ACTIVITIES COMMUNITY-CENTRED EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT 25 • emergency management arrangements 26 • cyclone 32 • earthquake 34 • fire 35 • flood 46 • hazardous materials 48 (incorporating urban search and rescue) • search/rescue 52 • storm 62 • tsunami 64 QUALITY PEOPLE SERVICES 66 SOUND BUSINESS PRACTICES 76 GOVERNANCE • corporate governance 88 • compliance reports 106 • key performance indicators 120 • financial statements 140 FESA ANNUAL REPORT 2004-05 1 PRINCIPAL ADDRESS: FESA House 480 Hay Street Perth WA 6000 POSTAL ADDRESS: GPO Box P1174 Perth WA 6844 TELEPHONE: [08] 9323 9300 FACSIMILE: [08] 9323 9470 E-MAIL: [email protected] WEBSITE: www.fesa.wa.gov.au 2 FESA ANNUAL REPORT 2004-05 TO THE HONOURABLE MICHELLE ROBERTS MLA MINISTER FOR POLICE AND EMERGENCY SERVICES In accordance with Section 66 of the Financial Administration and Audit Act 1985, we hereby submit for your information and presentation to Parliament, the Annual Report of the Fire and Emergency Services Authority of Western Australia for the year ended 30 June 2005. As well as the Financial Administration and Audit Act 1985, the report was prepared according to the Fire and Emergency Services Authority of Western Australia Act 1998, the Fire Brigades Act 1942 and the Bush Fires Act 1954. M Barnett FESA BOARD CHAIR RJ Mitchell FESA CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER 29 August 2005 FESA ANNUAL REPORT 2004-05 3 GLOSSARY OF TERMS AFAC Australasian Fire Authorities Council AWARE All West Australians Reducing Emergencies BRAG Bush Fire Ready Action Group CBR Chemical, Biological, Radiological COAG Council of Australian Governments DEMC District Emergency Management Committee CALM Department of Conservation and Land Management EMS Emergency Management Services ESC Emergency Services Cadets ESL Emergency Services Levy FESA Fire and Emergency Services Authority of Western Australia HAZMAT Hazardous Materials LEMC Local Emergency Management Committee SECG State Emergency Co-ordination Group SEMC State Emergency Management Committee SES State Emergency Service USAR Urban Search and Rescue VES Volunteer Emergency Service VFS Volunteer Fire Service VMRS Volunteer Marine Rescue Services 4 FESA ANNUAL REPORT 2004-05 FESA highlights 2004-05 COST OF FESA SERVICES Goods and Services Costs 1 JULY 2004 TO 30 JUNE 2005 $20,364,235 TOTAL: $171,720,185 Employee Costs $84,927,535 Property, Plant and Equipment costs $33,951,294 Borrowing Costs Grants and Subsidies Costs $2,711,623 $29,765,498 • The total cost of FESA services for 2004-05 was $171,720,185. • The projected cost of services for 2005-06 is $178.1 million. • In brief, in 2004-05 the Emergency Services Levy provided funding for: - 88 new firefighting appliances and other vehicles; - 10 State Emergency Service (SES) trailers; - four career Fire and Rescue Service (FRS) fire stations; - three new facilities supporting FRS, SES and Volunteer Emergency Service volunteers in regional WA and upgrades to three SES facilities; - one new regional office for FESA staff; - nine new fire stations and four station upgrades for local government volunteer bush fire brigades; - an estimated $720,000 worth of bush fire brigade personal protective equipment (protective clothing); and - total grant allocations for local government volunteer bush fire brigades and SES units amounting to approximately $15 million. • Additional funding of $2.2 million for Volunteer Marine Rescue Services over the next five years. • Approval of $20 million for the WA Emergency Radio Network. • Establishment of a dedicated Volunteer and Youth Services branch. • Consolidation of bush fire and associated environmental protection research through a range of scientific and operational research partnerships. At 30 June 2005, this included 14 research programs. OPERATIONAL HIGHLIGHTS • Career and volunteer firefighters responded to 3,271 structural fires and 8,925 bush fires. Total incidents decreased 12 per cent over 2003-04. • Volunteers spent in excess of 20,000 hours responding to 370 storm-related incidents. • SES volunteers spent a total of 760 hours undertaking cyclone-related activities. • Career and volunteer firefighters attended a total of 980 hazardous materials incidents – a 14 per cent increase on 2003-2004. • 92 incidents responded to by Helitacs – delivering approximately 3.25 million litres of water and 6,745 litres of foam in a total of 3,113 drops. Fixed-wing water bombers worked jointly with the Helitacs at 41 incidents. • RAC Rescue 1 emergency rescue helicopter service undertook 190 missions – 125 of which were to attend rescue incidents. FESA ANNUAL REPORT 2004-05 5 FESA Chair’s report The year 2004-05 has been one of major strategic developments for the Fire and Emergency Services Authority of Western Australia (FESA). We have completed our organisation's second three-year planning cycle and early in 2005 the Board adopted our third strategic plan, which covers the years 2005 to 2007. It was gratifying to note after a review of the FESA Strategic Plan 2002-2004, that all nine key strategic objectives set by the FESA Board for that period have either been met or seen considerable progress. In the new plan for the years ahead, the FESA Board has asked that the guiding principles at the heart of some of these objectives remain in the forefront of our planning processes. For example: • Equitable and adequate funding for emergency services; • Enhancement of support for all of our people - volunteers, career staff and cadets; and • Endorsement of contemporary emergency services and emergency management legislation. In all, 11 issues have been highlighted by the FESA Board for 2005-2007 and FESA's corporate executive team is already including these in divisional planning. The FESA Board will continue to focus on strategic management issues and to this end has instigated a new reporting program for the corporate executive team. At each board meeting key personnel report on progress against our strategic goals, demonstrating their acceptance of accountability for the success of FESA as a leading emergency services provider. They are now working on the development of procedures to more clearly quantify our progress against our goals. This is a challenge for all government agencies and FESA has been pleased to join the State Government's initiative for a more coordinated approach to strategic planning across the public sector. The Better Planning - Better Services initiative has resulted in FESA aligning its goals with those of the government, for more effective and efficient service provision to the community. The FESA Strategic Plan 2005-2007 complies with the planning guidelines and is specifically targeted to contribute to the government’s goal for people and communities: To enhance the quality of life and wellbeing for all people throughout Western Australia. The government's strategic outcome is: Safe and secure Western Australian communities. In addition, FESA is also one of the responsible agencies in relation to the safe regional communities outcome of the government’s regional development policy. Equitable funding, particularly in regional areas, has been an issue for Western Australian emergency services for decades. The past year saw the first budget process where FESA's funding, and that provided to local governments for emergency services, were based on a full year of the Emergency Services Levy (ESL). Elsewhere in this annual report there is considerable evidence of the enormous positive effect the ESL is already having on the equipping and training of Western Australia's emergency services family. While funding for volunteer marine rescue groups remains outside the ESL process, FESA secured an unprecedented level of funding for these volunteers this year through the State Government. Through the Minister for Police and Emergency Services, FESA sponsored the tabling of the Emergency Management Bill 2004 in State Parliament late last year. Unfortunately, because a State election was called, the Bill lapsed. However, this has enabled more time to be devoted to fine tuning the proposed legislation and to give more focused consideration to how Western Australia will provide for terrorist threats and other emergencies. The proposed legislation has been designed to formalise in law this State's emergency management arrangements. Currently, arrangements for preparing for and dealing with major emergencies and natural disasters are based on a Cabinet minute dating from 1985. Over much of the past year, FESA has also been working on a comprehensive review of the 'emergency services Acts': • Fire and Emergency Services Authority of Western Australia Act 1998; • Bush Fires Act 1954; and • Fire Brigades Act 1942. 6 FESA ANNUAL REPORT 2004-05 The Minister for Police and Emergency Services recommended that a parliamentary inquiry review the legislation, independent of FESA. The Community Development and Justice Standing Committee of the Legislative Assembly undertook to conduct the review. However, the calling of the State election intervened and this inquiry halted. FESA established an internal Legislative Review Steering Committee to develop a submission to the inquiry and this committee and its executive officer have continued their work. It is hoped that a formal external inquiry