FIRE DANGER SEASON

Mr BIGNELL (Mawson) (14:34): My question is to the Minister for Emergency Services. Can the minister advise the house about what the government is doing to help communities across South Australia prepare for the bushfire season?

The Hon. J.M. RANKINE (Wright—Minister for Police, Minister for Correctional Services, Minister for Emergency Services, Minister for Road Safety, Minister for Multicultural Affairs) (14:34): I thank the member for Mawson for his question. I know he is very actively involved with all of the emergency services in his electorate. This month, I announced, with the federal Minister for Emergency Management, Nicola Roxon, a combined grants package of $6.7 million for 40 projects to help communities prepare for and respond to emergencies.

Since this program began, 176 projects have been supported around South Australia. They include: $1.15 million to provide flood mitigation protection to the West Beach area; $121,000 to help Aboriginal communities prepare for extreme heat; $52,000 to the RSPCA to create a plan to help save and move animals in a disaster; and $95,500 to enhance emergency call centre services to improve access to the deaf and hearing/speech impaired community.

If ever we needed a wake-up call to get ready for the bushfire season, this week has been it. The CFS has advised me that the fire which burnt almost 2,000 hectares near Sleaford on Eyre Peninsula is now under control. I have to say that it is thanks to the hard work of so many individuals, including the CFS, MFS, SES, SAPOL and the Department of Environment, Water and Natural Resources. Thanks to them no lives were lost. The professionalism and skill of all agencies really does come to the fore in times such as this and I am sure it gives confidence and assurance to the communities they serve.

My thoughts and sympathies go to those families and individuals who were affected by the fire, which claimed: 14 cabins; a house, with damage to another; a caravan; a campervan; 300 sheep; four cars; irrigation equipment; and fences and numerous sheds. Minister Hunter and I visited the fire ground, along with the member for Flinders, and spoke to some of the long-term residents of the Sleaford cabins. One resident of 20 years had lost everything and we arranged for emergency supplies to be taken out for him and others. As we have seen in the media reports, the wildlife also suffered. It was heart wrenching to see three koalas in burnt trees clearly in distress. Again, help was arranged and I am hopeful they were successfully rescued.

Supporting the effort were volunteers from the SES, Salvation Army and St John Ambulance, as well as officers from Housing SA, who are responsible for recovery efforts. Of course, this is not an exhaustive list of those who lent a hand, with the Eyre Peninsula community all working together to help those in need. To everyone involved, I want to say a very sincere thank you.

Last weekend was a very busy time for our firefighters, with significant fires in Bramfield, Yalata, Vanessa, Kallora, Humbug Scrub, Calca, Mambray Creek and Dutchman's Stern Conservation Park, and we all know these will not be the last. Prevention is always better than cure and I want to make special mention of the work of Therese Pedler, who is a CFS community educator. Based in Port Lincoln, Therese is a member of the Country Fire Service's Community Education Unit that works with individuals and communities to build the knowledge and skills of residents to enable them to make life-saving decisions with confidence when fire strikes.

Our community education officers do a great job and I have asked the chief officer of the CFS to further increase the resources of his team as we head into the bushfire season. The community education officers talk directly with community members, often in their own homes, as well as running workshops, such as the award winning Fiery Women Workshop, to help South Australians become bushfire ready.

Again, it is worth asking: if you live in a bushfire danger area, if you care about your life and the lives of your loved ones, what will you do when fire strikes? Will you be prepared? If you do not know, now is the time to prepare.

The SPEAKER: Thank you, minister. I gave you a few more seconds on that question because I think it is really important and relevant currently.