RFS chief disappointed he was told of army deployment from media
NSW RFS boss Shane Fitzsimmons has said he only found out about the Prime Minsiter’s decision to deploy 3000 army reservists to help the bushfires from the media.
NSW
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Rural fire chief Shane Fitzsimmons said he only found out about Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s deployment of 3000 army reservists to the fire front through media reports.
RFS commissioner Mr Fitzsimmons said the RFS’s Commonwealth liaison and Australian Defence Force personnel were also not given any information about the deployment plan from the Prime Minister.
“We spent a fair amount of the day yesterday trying to seek clarity with our commonwealth liaison personnel that are embedded here in the state operation centre, our ADF people that are embedded here in the state operation centre,” he said.
“It’s fair to say they weren’t across the details either.”
Mr Fitzsimmons said the teams spent significant time yesterday to understand how to incorporate the army reservists into the existing fire strategy.
“It took us time yesterday to understand what the announcement was, what it meant and how was it expected to be integrated into what was already a high performing, highly effectively integrated suite of operations here across New South Wales.”
It has been confirmed this morning that Prime Minister’s office has apologised for the lack of communication.
“I was very public this morning and I make no apologies for it. I was disappointed and frustrated in the middle of what was one of our worst days ever on record,” Mr Fitzsimmons said.
“(The Prime Minister’s Office) apologised in hindsight for thinking we could have done better in communicating that.
“We’re all working on this together to make the best of this announcement.”
Premier Gladys Berejiklian was informed of the announcement by Mr Morrison prior to its release.
“The Prime Minister contacted me directly shortly before the details were released and I was pleased to take the call and welcomed the additional report,” Ms Berejiklian said.
The RFS said they are working on a strategy to integrate the additional support into their fire plan.
Meanwhile, Mr Morrison has defended a video posted on social media detailing the government’s bushfire response after it was labelled “shameless” and a breach of political advertising rules.
The video, authorised by Mr Morrison and posted on Saturday, included details of defence ships and aircraft that have been deployed along with funding allocated for more firefighting craft, volunteer firefighters and those who lost homes or incomes.
British broadcaster Piers Morgan slammed the video as a “self-promotional commercial with cheesy elevator music”.
“This is one of the most tone-deaf things I’ve ever seen a country’s leader put out during a crisis. Shameless & shameful,” he posted on Twitter.
Former prime minister Kevin Rudd also expressed outrage.
“On a day we have catastrophic fire conditions, in the midst of a genuine national crisis, Morrison, the marketing guy, does what? He releases a Liberal Party ad! He is no longer fit to hold the high office of prime minister,” Mr Rudd tweeted.
Mr Morrison took to Twitter to defend the video late on Saturday, saying it was a legal requirement in Australia to include an authorisation on all video messages used by MPs on social media.
“The video message simply communicates the Government’s policy decisions and the actions the Government is undertaking to the public,” he posted
Originally published as RFS chief disappointed he was told of army deployment from media
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