SA needs 500-strong firefighting force as changing climate shrinks burn-off window of opportunity
South Australia needs hundreds more firefighters to keep up with off-season burn-offs as drier and hotter conditions leave our current force struggling to keep up.
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South Australia needs a firefighting force of 500 to tackle spring burn-offs on government land ahead of each fire season, the former head of the Environment Department has warned.
Allan Holmes was Environment Department CEO from 1999 to 2015 and said the changing nature of fires meant the 100 specialist staff who work for the department for nine months from September each year could no longer keep up with safety burns.
“The countryside is getting much dryer and we are getting much hotter days with fire behaviour we have not seen before,’’ he said.
“We have seen these sort of fires for a single day or for a few hours, but when they go for a number days in this fashion that is extraordinary.
“When they burn like that they cannot be controlled and so over days that is very dangerous.
“The summer crew of 100 is just not enough. Victoria has a summer crew of 1000.’’
The Environment Department each year has targets for “cold fires” on government land, to help prevent more catastrophic fires on extreme days of high wind and heat.
The burns also create new growth for animals to feed on when the worst fires hit their habitats.
But in an exclusive report in 2018, The Advertiser revealed the department had only completed about half of the burning it had planned.
Mr Holmes remains influential in environment circles as the Presiding Member of the Coast Protection Board, Deputy Presiding Member of the board of the Environment Protection Authority and member of the board of the Environment Institute at the University of Adelaide.
Mr Holmes said if the December Cudlee Creek fire footprint was moved south westward, it would have covered dozens of towns between Crafers and Mt Barker and thousands of homes would have been lost.
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“This should be real wakeup call, and some people were very lucky that fire was not over the more populated area, there could have been a very large loss of life,’’ he said
Environment Minister David Speirs said: “The State Government undertakes a number of activities throughout the year to prepare for the fire danger season and help protect the state against the ongoing risk of bushfire”.
He said the department currently had a fleet of fire vehicles and 470 workers were trained in firefighting.
“An expert review was undertaken in 2017/18 into the effectiveness of our fire program and all recommendations were implemented,’’ Mr Speirs said.
But Mr Holmes said the seasonal workforce of 100 — which should be turned into a force of 500 — were specialist experts in firefighting.
“These (470) people in the department can be a biologist in the city or a park ranger, not dedicated spring firefighters,’’ he said.
miles.kemp@news.com.au