‘It is not their responsibility’: Expert defends BOM after Dolphin Sands fire
A bushfire expert has delivered a blunt message to Tasmanians: don’t blame the weather bureau and start taking responsibility for your own emergency preparedness plans.
Dolphin Sands bushfire victims should resist the urge to blame the Weather Bureau for not issuing a timely warning, Tasmania’s leading fire expert says.
The bushfire destroyed 19 houses and damaged 40 when it swept through the coastal community north of Swansea last Thursday.
David Bowman a professor of Pyrogeography and Fire Science at the University of Tasmania said while it was understandable people were upset, the Bureau of Meteorology should not be criticised for being slow to warn residents about the hazardous fire conditions.
Some distressed residents have complained about poor communication from emergency services, including slow and out of date online updates from the Bureau of Meteorology.
However Professor Bowman says it is “not the BOM’s responsibility” to save people from a bushfire.
“You need to have situational awareness about where you live,” he said.
“If you can see the wind picking up and fire, it’s time to start your emergency management plan.”
Dolphin Sands resident, Robyn Moore, told the ABC that “there hasn’t been clear messaging on how to get out if you have to,”
“I [had] no contact with any authority over this entire period.” she said.
She explained that locals had been feeling frustrated by the situation.
Police on Monday confirmed that Dolphin Sands Rd would remain closed until at least Tuesday following an onsite inspection among five entities.
Southern Regional Emergency Management Controller Commander Jason Elmer said the decision had been made in consultation with Tasmania Fire Service, Tasmania Police, State Emergency Service, council and TasNetworks.
“Unfortunately, with hazardous trees, damaged infrastructure and debris continuing to pose significant risks in the forecast damaging winds, as well as ongoing restoration works by TasNetworks, the situation remains unsafe for public access and the road will not reopen today,” he said on Monday.
He said emergency services hoped to reopen the road on Tuesday following further risk assessments.
“We thank the community for their patience and co-operation as we work to resolve this situation safely.,
“Further information regarding the recovery process will be communicated in the coming days,” Commander Elmer said.
Professor Bowman stressed the importance of having a bushfire management plan and preparing property adequately if you decided to stay and defend.
He explained that residents needed to be “realistic” about where they live.
“Think, has this happened before and is the vegetation extremely dry?”
He said coastal areas like Dolphin Sands could be really tough for fire management due to the naturally dry shrubbery and eucalyptus trees that exist in those areas.
“The vegetation dries out quickly and is highly flammable,” he said.
To protect yourself, Professor Bowman suggests making your property as fire and ember safe as possible.
“Sand and gravel might not be attractive but for your property it’s fire safe.”
Having a backup water tank and pump is important, especially if you decide to stay.
If you are living in a dry area like Dolphin Sands and decide to defend, it is important to have a fallback plan.
“You can either plan to leave early or stay, but have a plan for the worst case scenario such as retreating to the beach.”
Many towns around Tasmania are one road in and one road out, adding to the risk of not being able to escape if things go awry.
Originally published as ‘It is not their responsibility’: Expert defends BOM after Dolphin Sands fire
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