Wilmington Fire

The Hon. B.R. HOOD (15:14): I seek leave to make a brief explanation prior to addressing questions to the Minister for Emergency Services regarding CFS protocols.

Leave granted.

The Hon. B.R. HOOD: The opposition has been advised by Wilmington locals that their local CFS volunteers and farm firefighting units were denied proper access to contain the Wilmington scrub fire in the Mount Remarkable National Park. The fire, which ignited on 8 February, had reached the boundary range of some 60 kilometres by 12 February. Line containment from prescribed burn-offs and clearance was effective during the first two days, concentrating on the north-western boundary outside the national park, and praise goes to the 70-plus CFS volunteers and farm firefighting units who worked tirelessly in hot conditions right throughout the Wilmington scrub fire.

However, we heard from frustrated locals that while the outside of the park was managed competently there were concerns regarding the DEW staff's containment measures inside the park boundaries. The opposition has received advice that CFS volunteers were denied access by the national park rangers because they did not want burn-offs or bulldozers to create containment lines within the park. In a local's own words: 'We are not allowed to fight the fire our way in our own home region.'

Containment lines were subsequently breached and the fire front spread to the south and east over the next two days, as northerly winds increased. My questions to the Minister for Emergency Services are:

1. Is it normal protocol for the CFS to be denied access to a national park by a national park service during an emergency such as a bushfire?

2. If so, does the minister believe this is helpful or warranted?

3. Does the minister agree that local CFS members and farm firefighting units with intimate local knowledge should be a part of the decision-making process in regard to fire containment in their home regions, even if that involves public lands?

The Hon. E.S. BOURKE (Minister for Emergency Services and Correctional Services, Minister for Autism, Minister for Recreation, Sport and Racing) (15:16): I am more than happy for the member to forward those concerns to me, so I can directly reach out to them, because last time in question time the concerns you were raising were unfounded. I would more than appreciate getting the feedback that you are raising directly.

The Wilmington community has been working particularly hard, between aerial strikes and volunteers from CFS, MFS, SES, St John's and a range of different communities who have been going to Wilmington. I have been there myself and have heard firsthand from the community about how hard they have been working.

I have been to the primary school. The primary school also identified their thoughts about the local farmers and the CFS and the volunteers who are supporting the Wilmington community. They have made those thoughts and that message very clear to that community. On the front fence of the primary school is 'They rock'. They are the core of the community. There are people from across the entire state who have come to support during this fire and emergency.

To go into the details, I am advised that on 3 February 2025, at around 5.30pm, the CFS responded to a scrub fire near Alligator Gorge in Mount Remarkable National Park in the Flinders Ranges. I understand that due to the thick scrub and the hard-to-access terrain the fire continued to burn. You can appreciate that this is not a flat surface. It is very rugged terrain and requires a coordinated attempt that is done through a central agency.

I am advised that within three hours of the fire starting it was declared as a level 2 incident, with the escalation to a level 3 incident the following day. I am advised that six strike teams, involving more than 150 firefighters per day, aircraft and farm fire units have worked to establish and maintain a perimeter around the fire and to extinguish the hotspots.

As you have suggested, this is a large fire, over 4,650 hectares in steep and inaccessible terrain at most times. The total perimeter is approximately 58 kilometres. This fire, because of a lot of the aerial strikes, was able to be maintained to the size that it was, and only one structure was lost, being a toilet.

I would like to say thank you to the many who have been involved in this fire. It could have been a lot worse but because of the actions that were taken by many there was only one structure lost. We also have to think of the individual, the volunteer, who was impacted by this. As I mentioned in a ministerial statement to this chamber in my very first question time, there was one firefighter injured, a volunteer, and my thoughts are with him and his family.