Better training for triple-0 emergency operators, better equipment recommended by flood inquiry

ANNA Bligh says Wivenhoe Dam will be drained to 75 per cent capacity if the state again confronts a wet season forecast as bleak as the one for last summer.

flood

QUEENSLAND Premier Anna Bligh says Brisbane's giant flood shield, Wivenhoe Dam, will be drained to 75 per cent capacity if the state again confronts a wet season forecast as bleak as the one for last summer.

She said the commission of inquiry into the flood emergency that claimed 35 lives had found "some confusion and lack of clarity" in advice from the dam operators to the responsible state minister, Stephen Robertson.

The inquiry's interim report, just released, had also identified a technical breach in adherence to the operational manual for the dam concerning the degree to which the wet weather forecasts were taken into account. This, however, had not had any impact on the "course of events". Ms Bligh accepted, however, this could be tested in the courts.

The voluminous report, handed today to Ms Bligh by commission boss Justice Cate Holmes, details preparations that should be taken ahead of the next wet season and reviews the operation of Wivenhoe during the flood disaster last January, that resulted in thousands of homes being inundated in Brisbane and Ipswich. Most of the loss of life happened in separate flash floods in the Lockyer Valley, west of the Queensland capital.

Ms Bligh said Wivenhoe's dam's capacity would be lowered to 75 per cent if the Bureau of Meteorology presented forecasts of heavy rainfall with the same "high degree confidence" it expressed prior to the deluge that caused the devastating January flooding.

The commission had also made a range of recommendations concerning the operation the government helicopter fleet, the need for more emergency personnel to be trained in swift water rescue and better training for triple-0 phone operators.

The operating manual for Wivenhoe Dam would be overhauled by an expert committee, Ms Bligh said.

All recommendations applying to the Queensland government would be implemented in full, along with those applying to preparations for next wet season, starting in November.

"I don't shy away that there are criticisms of the government in this report. You will find criticisms of the minister, criticisms of government agencies." Ms Bligh said.

She said with the benefit of hindsight "it's fair to say everyone would have done things slightly differently". But the severity of the flooding defied experience in Queensland.

Ms Bligh said the state's disaster management system was “a sound one” in the lead-up to the floods, but significant changes were recommended.

“When you stretch a system to its limits you find its weaknesses,” she said.

The Premier said the operating manual for the Wivenhoe dam would be overhauled and legislative changes brought in to deal with changes to the dam management.

“There was some confusion and a lack of clarity between water agencies,” she said.

“It finds that in relation to that there needs to be significant improvement and proposes changes to provide absolute clarity.

“In relation to the operation and compliance they found one technical breach, (but) not one that led to any consequential outcome.”