Internal review of operations during the 2015–16 bushfire season “A lesson learned isn’t a lesson until it brings about change” Dr Christine Owen Contents Internal review of operations during the 2015–16 bushfire season .................................................. 1 1 Executive summary .............................................................................................................. 4 1.1 The 2015–16 bushfire season in Tasmania ........................................................... 4 1.2 Bushfire management in Tasmania ........................................................................ 4 1.3 About this review ................................................................................................... 5 1.4 About the recommendations .................................................................................. 6 1.5 Summary of recommendations .............................................................................. 7 2 Purpose and scope of review ............................................................................................. 13 2.1 Purpose ............................................................................................................... 13 2.2 Scope .................................................................................................................. 13 3 The 2015–16 bushfire season in Tasmania ........................................................................ 15 3.1 Extreme weather, a record number of fires and an unprecedented response ...... 15 3.2 The firefighting deployment .................................................................................. 16 3.3 Timeline of campaign fires ................................................................................... 16 4 Review method .................................................................................................................. 17 4.1 Project approach .................................................................................................. 17 4.2 Data collection ..................................................................................................... 18 4.3 Data analysis ....................................................................................................... 19 5 Acknowledgments .............................................................................................................. 21 6 Recommendations and context .......................................................................................... 22 6.1 Preparedness ...................................................................................................... 23 6.2 Review of state incident management and arrangements .................................... 26 6.3 Capacity and capability ........................................................................................ 28 6.4 Planning and Incident Action Plans ...................................................................... 32 6.5 Resourcing and resource-tracking ....................................................................... 34 6.6 Communication .................................................................................................... 36 6.7 Air operations ...................................................................................................... 37 6.8 Safety .................................................................................................................. 40 6.9 Interoperability ..................................................................................................... 42 6.10 Local knowledge .................................................................................................. 44 6.11 Communication systems and information technology........................................... 45 6.12 Finance ................................................................................................................ 47 Tasmania Fire Service Page 2 Review of operations during the 2015–16 bushfires 7 Conclusion ............................................................................................................................... 48 Tasmania Fire Service Page 3 Review of operations during the 2015–16 bushfires 1 Executive summary 1.1 The 2015–16 bushfire season in Tasmania The bushfire season in Tasmania between October 2015 and March 2016 elicited a response and commitment that was unprecedented in Tasmanian history. It involved a wide range of emergency management personnel from within Tasmania, other Australian jurisdictions and overseas. This event was unique, in part, because of the number of fires occurring in remote and inaccessible areas requiring fire suppression. 1.2 Bushfire management in Tasmania The agencies most closely involved in bushfire management in Tasmania are Tasmania Fire Service (TFS), Forestry Tasmania (FT) and the Parks and Wildlife Service (PWS). Each of these agencies is represented on the Tasmanian Government’s Multi-Agency Coordination Group (MAC). An Inter-Agency Fire Management Protocol is reviewed each year that is effectively the operating agreement between the three agencies. The protocol underpins the cooperation that exists between the agencies to ensure the suppression and management of bushfire in Tasmania is safe, efficient and cost-effective. Through this arrangement the agencies collaborate in relation to training, identifying and mitigating risk, planned burning operations and suppressing bushfires. Since the 2013 Tasmanian Bushfires Inquiry Report and its subsequent recommendations, these organisations have continued to develop their combined bushfire response capability at both the response and incident management levels. This year, for the first time, the Tasmanian Government’s ‘Tasmanian Interoperability Register’ was activated. This ensured state servants from several government agencies were available to provide surge capacity in support roles, resulting in a whole-of- government response. Agencies included in the register are: • Department of Health and Human Services • Tasmanian Health Service • Department of State Growth, Department of Justice • Department of Police, Fire and Emergency Management (DPFEM) • Department of Premier and Cabinet • Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment • Department of Treasury and Finance • Forestry Tasmania (FT) • Department of Education • TasTAFE. Tasmania Fire Service Page 4 Review of operations during the 2015–16 bushfires 1.3 About this review At the end of the 2015–16 bushfire season, TFS, FT and PWS initiated an internal operational review into the season to ensure ongoing continuous improvement in emergency management, particularly the subsequent operational response to fires affecting Tasmanian communities, community and environmental assets, and Tasmania’s longer-term economy. A review team was established that included members from TFS, FT, PWS and the University of Tasmania to manage this internal operations review (the Review). The objective of the Review was to ensure that operational lessons learned during the 2015–16 Tasmanian bushfire season were identified, captured and communicated to Tasmania’s emergency management partners and relevant stakeholders by July 2016. The Review involved: • a survey developed and analysed by Dr Christine Owen that provided all personnel who were involved in the bushfire campaign an opportunity to provide feedback. Christine has extensive experience in research and has worked with the University of Tasmania, the Bushfire and Natural Hazards Co-operative Research Centre and the Australasian Fire and Emergency Services Authorities Council (AFAC) • debriefs with Incident Management Teams throughout Tasmania • debriefs with State Fire Operations Centre personnel • debriefs with personnel from New South Wales, Victoria and Queensland • debriefs with specific functional and support areas • agency-specific debriefs conducted by FT and PWS in all three regions. The information gained has been analysed and collated in the body of this report, and recommendations for action have been identified for the attention of the MAC and TFS Executive Leadership Team. Feedback through the Review has provided valuable insight into the experiences of individuals who were involved in the operational response during this past bushfire season. These insights can help identify the lessons to be learned so we can continue to improve. It should be noted that participants also provided feedback on how we have continued to improve in recent years and identified areas that worked well. Relevant agencies should continue to remind their personnel about the value of their ongoing and outstanding contribution to their organisations and the Tasmanian community. It was recognised that many of the issues that arose this bushfire season could be attributed to the unprecedented scale of the event and the enormity of the response. The focus of the Review has been to proactively research and analyse the lessons that can be learned from collective experience in readiness for any similar events that could occur in the future. As a result, this report focuses on improvements, although the many areas that worked well are also acknowledged. Tasmania Fire Service Page 5 Review of operations during the 2015–16 bushfires 1.4 About the recommendations Overall the Internal Operational Review aligns closely with several recommendations made within the AFAC Independent Operational Review1. The Review acknowledges the many aspects that