Firefighters union declares Melbourne’s new Metro Tunnel unsafe for firefighters to enter
Firefighters from eight Melbourne stations have issued safety notices warning they can’t protect the public in the new Metro Tunnel, describing equipment as faulty and training as inadequate.
Firefighters warn they cannot enter the new Metro Tunnel due to concerns about radios, breathing equipment and training, but the government and state fire agency insist there are no safety issues ahead of the project’s grand opening.
Militant United Firefighters Union boss Peter Marshall says firefighters “do not have the equipment, knowledge or training to protect members of the public” in the new Metro Tunnel, nor in the soon-to-open West Gate Tunnel.
Firefighters elected as safety representatives at eight stations in central and western Melbourne issued safety notices to Fire Rescue Victoria that require the agency to address their concerns, lest they were “at increased risk of injury or death during fire or incident in the tunnel”.
This could mean firefighters cannot respond to emergencies in the tunnels unless the agency upgrades its equipment.
“Firefighters protect public safety, that is our duty,” Mr Marshall said.
“To do that, we need equipment that works. We do not have it.”
The government worked with FRV to ensure the safety of the tunnel, but the union says it should have been consulted on the plans.
One of the union’s concerns is that their radios will not work inside the Metro Tunnel.
Leaked video appears to show FRV radios failing to connect in the new Town Hall and Parkville stations.
The union claims this breakdown is due to FRV’s portable radios lacking critical control channel pairs necessary for tunnel operation, a fault it says Telstra identified.
FRV said field tests were ongoing on network infrastructure, and it had contingency plans if problems arose.
The union is also concerned that firefighters would go without long-duration breathing apparatus for extended underground rescues.
The current safety strategy is understood to use ventilation systems that the UFU warned could intensify fires and disperse hazardous materials.
An FRV spokesman said Victorians “should feel confident that these tunnels are safe to use” and to suggest otherwise “undermined the exceptional work of FRV’s people”.
The spokesman said more than 700 firefighters had visited or taken part in exercises in the Metro Tunnel.
The agency took the fight to the union, telling the Sunday Herald Sun that it understood the UFU had issued a bulletin to members last week urging them not to take part in emergency response exercises planned for the West Gate Tunnel.
“Furthermore, the UFU refused to agree to FRV firefighters’ attendance at the coming multi-agency exercise on December 3 through the operations consultative committee process.
“This is deeply concerning when the UFU has itself been calling for emergency exercises to take place enabling additional firefighters to participate.”
The Premier previously shot down the union’s concerns, and on Saturday Transport Infrastructure Minister Gabrielle Williams backed the safety of the project.
“The Metro Tunnel was given accreditation by our national rail safety regulator – an independent regulator that holds us to incredibly high fire safety standards – and I can’t tell you how proud I am that ONRSR as the national regulator not only accredited this project but accredited it with no conditions attached,” Ms Williams said.
“It’s testament to the hard work, not only into the design and construction, but in all that work to ensure that the safety systems and all the integrated systems operated in the way they needed to, to ensure the safety of this rail tunnel.”
Originally published as Firefighters union declares Melbourne’s new Metro Tunnel unsafe for firefighters to enter
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