Royal Commission: Fire report urges disaster ‘war games’

The Royal Commission has released a 40-page list of ‘draft propositions’ that it wants all levels of government to consider.

NSW Rural Fire Service firefighters work to contain a blaze near the township of Bemboka during the ‘Black Summer’. Picture: Stuart McEvoy

The government should “war-game” natural disaster scenarios, create a national fuel load database to assist with hazard reduction, and develop an Australia-wide hazard app with warnings for all natural disasters, a report into the Black Summer bushfires says.

The Royal Commission into National Natural Disaster Arr­angements released a 40-page list of “draft propositions” on Friday that it wants local, state and federal governments to consider and respond to ahead of the landmark inquiry’s final report, due at the end of October.

The list includes suggestions such as more research into ­hazard-reduction burns, better sharing ­arrangements of firefighting personnel, equipment and aerial ­assets between the states and territories, and the creation of a watchdog to police natural disaster preparedness.

It also suggests the peak bodies that co-ordinate firefighting resources, such as water bombers, could be moved in-house to become a “government entity”.

Also flagged is the creation of “real-time, nationally consistent public messaging on air quality” and more research into the health impacts of bushfires, after much of the nation was blanketed in thick smoke, which contributed to nearly $2bn in health costs.

The report says all levels of government “should invest in the further research, development, and use of smoke forecasting systems, building on work already undertaken in relation to the Air Quality Forecasting system”.

It says the government’s fire simulation and predictive capabilities could also be improved in collaboration with the CSIRO and other research institutions.

Telecommunications issues experienced by those fleeing infernos were raised consistently during the inquiry. One of the draft proposals suggests the immediate deployment of back-up diesel ­generators and temporary telecommunications facilities in the event of similar fires.

The commission has previously called for the immediate rollout of a new nat­ional emergency warning system, which has been in development for six years, after the inquiry heard evidence that terms such as “watch and act” had been confusing to those in the line of fire.

Commissioner Annabelle Bennett, SC, has previously blasted the NSW Rural Fire Service for not fast-tracking the update, declaring the move “breathtaking” after hearing evidence that people in fire zones had struggled to understand the “watch and act” direction because it simultaneously suggested people observe the fire while also taking ­action to leave.

One of the draft proposals suggests the rollout of a national warning system that applies to all natural disasters, not just fires. It suggests national cabinet, or a similar peak intergovernmental body, could be adopted to provide “national level co-ordination and decision making in preparing for, responding to, resilience to, and recovery from natural disasters”.

It comes as Scott Morrison said on Friday Emergency Management Australia had been tasked with ensuring a “seamless operational arrangement” between states and territories to allow emergency workers to travel interstate to assist in the event of bushfires, floods, cyclones and other emergencies, regardless of COVID-19 border shutdowns.