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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3)
2009-11-19 Daily Xml
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SOUTH-EAST COUNTRY FIRE SERVICE BRIGADES

Mr GOLDSWORTHY (Kavel) (15:33): I want to raise in the house this afternoon some quite serious issues, which arise from recent media reports in the South-East of South Australia. I have made some public statements in relation to that, so there are no secrets about the issues that I have raised concerning this matter. It relates to emergency services and particularly the fact that there has been a delay in some CFS brigades in the South-East being called out to specific incidents.

The state Liberals are not dreaming this up. As I said, it has been reported in the media. I have spoken to some CFS volunteers in that region of the state, and I understand that the police in Millicent, in particular, have raised concerns in relation to delays in the emergency services being called and attending specific incidents. It has been reported in the local newspaper and also on ABC Radio in the South-East. I understand there have been two incidents when there was a delay in the emergency services attending in recent weeks.

I am advised there is a memorandum of understanding between the emergency services that, if one receives a 000 call, that service calls the other two as soon as possible. So, if the police receive a 000 call, as soon as possible, they call the ambulance if it is a road crash incident, and they call the CFS. As I said, there has been a delay, particularly relating to the call-out of the CFS to those incidents.

This delay is causing real concern in those communities. I do not want to be tremendously dramatic in this respect, but it can well be the difference between life and death if the emergency services are delayed in being called to incidents. That is one issue I want to raise in relation to the emergency services issue.

The other issue goes to the actual communications system, and I think this is where the problem lies also. It is known as the BOM (Brigade Operation Management) system within the agencies. Two or three years ago, the CFS system, which was operating quite satisfactorily, was abolished and amalgamated with the Metropolitan Fire Service system. The information that I have received is that the CFS system being put on top of the MFS system has caused that system to be under pressure and strain and, at times, it is failing, which is evidenced in the delay in CFS brigades being called out to specific incidents.

The previous minister for emergency services, against advice, made that decision. I am advised that the minister was advised not to do that because amalgamating the CFS and MFS systems would cause problems and place the system under pressure, but the minister disregarded that advice and it went ahead. As a result, we see the consequences.

There is a new communication system that the government is proposing called SACAD (South Australian Computer Aided Dispatch), and I ask the minister: how long will it take for this new system to be implemented?

Time expired.

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