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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, Second Session (54-2)
2020-05-13 Daily Xml
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Motions

International Firefighters' Day

Mr ODENWALDER (Elizabeth) (11:31): I move:

That this house—

(a) notes that 4 May is International Firefighters' Day;

(b) expresses its gratitude to all of our paid and volunteer firefighters in South Australia for their contribution to the safety of our community; and

(c) remembers the sacrifice of those firefighters who have lost their lives in service of their community.

Over the last two months the impact of the COVID-19 emergency has been so devastating and so near complete that it is easy for those of us who were not directly affected by the fires, in what has become known as 'black summer', to forget just how extreme and all consuming they were. Until the emergence of COVID-19, the fires were really the only story in town, and for good reason.

Last summer saw our firefighters tested as never before, and in the process all of us gained a renewed appreciation of the work they do. The events of our black summer brought home, if a reminder was needed, the bravery of our firefighters, both paid and unpaid, who go in where the rest of us might run. They go in because it is their job, it is their duty and because they are driven by the desire to protect their community.

As a police officer, on many occasions I had the honour of working alongside firefighters, both MFS and CFS, and while there is a good-natured rivalry between the services there is clearly also a deep, if often unspoken, mutual respect. More recently, as shadow minister, I have been given the extraordinary opportunity to meet many more firefighters and gain a much deeper understanding of the work they do and the dedication with which they do it.

So, while I might dwell here today on the recent bushfires, I want to pay tribute to all our firefighters, paid and unpaid, and I hope my work as shadow minister, or one day as minister, will serve to support their work and ensure that they are as well resourced and safe as they can be. It is one of those areas where there is broad consensus and bipartisanship. We may differ about how resources should be allocated, or what priorities different resources should take, but in general there is a bipartisanship and a belief that our firefighters should be supported, come what may.

The last bushfire season, as I said, tested our firefighters like never before. The season started earlier than ever, when the CFS sent 1,300 volunteers, including both on-the-ground firefighters and incident managers, across to the Eastern States. This was then interrupted and complicated by major fires here in Port Lincoln and Yorketown, and then the catastrophic fires we saw in the Hills and, most particularly, Kangaroo Island. On top of all this there were many fires in almost every region of South Australia, as well as continuing commitments interstate. It was in every way an unprecedented effort by our firefighters, and one that saw a level of community support that was also unprecedented.

Now, of course, these fires have become the subject of not only a state-based inquiry but a federal royal commission. I will save any direct commentary on those inquiries for a more appropriate forum, but I will say that I will be watching very closely to ensure that the voices of the on-the-ground firefighters above all are heard in any inquiry and acted upon when recommendations are made.

Despite the enormous and all-consuming distraction of COVID-19, we are still in the grip of an unfolding climate emergency. We need to make sure, on top of any other policy considerations, that our firefighters, who are on the front line of this emergency, are equipped, resourced and, most importantly, safe. This catastrophic fire season will not be our last and I fear that it really was just a taste of things to come. We need our firefighters to be ready and supported. We owe it to them.

There are others here, particularly the members for Mawson and Kavel, who have had a much closer experience than I have of the impact of these fires, but I did visit Kangaroo Island on several occasions and the Cudlee Creek/Lobethal area many times over the summer and I saw and heard enough from our firefighters to know that we owe them all an enormous and ongoing debt. They do an absolutely extraordinary job, they do it knowing the risks and knowing that many brave firefighters before them have lost their lives in service to the community.

So, to the men and women of the Metropolitan Fire Service, the Country Fire Service, the dedicated firefighters attached to the other agencies and bodies and to those who get on their farm units to protect their properties and the properties of their neighbours, on behalf of the state opposition and the wider community I say thank you.

The Hon. C.L. WINGARD (Gibson—Minister for Police, Emergency Services and Correctional Services, Minister for Recreation, Sport and Racing) (11:36): I rise to speak in support of this motion and to note also the great work that our firefighters do, be they MFS, CFS or anywhere in between, including our farm firefighters. It is remarkable to see how the role of firefighters has changed over the journey. Modern era firefighters do not just attend burning buildings, they do a whole lot more than that.

A big part of the job is to comfort victims, who have in some cases lost their world. They make us feel like we can live without fear because if the need arises, no matter the circumstances, we know they will be there to protect us. It is a bit of a selfish attitude I suppose, but it is confirmation of the great work that firefighters have done over such a long period of time that we have that level of comfort within our community, knowing that they can do that work.

As I said, be it the CFS or the MFS, that level of assurity within the South Australian community, focused on those two brigades and what they bring to our community, should be recognised with this motion. Of course, the most recent summer brought that all to the fore. It was one of the most dangerous summers that this state has ever seen. Before the dangers appeared here in South Australia, New South Wales was battling with their own catastrophe.

Having been to a number of regions and spoken to a number of people who went and then came back and having spoken to my interstate counterparts about the great service that South Australia gave, everyone in this chamber and in our state should be immensely proud of what the South Australian volunteers, in many cases, and professional firefighters did to go over and help in New South Wales.

As we headed towards Christmas, South Australia had provided more support to New South Wales than had any other state. When you think about that, per capita we are by no stretch one of the big states in this nation, but South Australia delivered so much support and I know because I got personal calls from New South Wales to say thank you: thank you for the great service and the great work that our volunteers and professional firefighters provided to them on the eastern seaboard.

To add to that, perhaps even a better response from New South Wales than a thankyou was that they said, 'Your people are of the highest calibre, the highest quality, and we have so much admiration for the way they go about their business.' All the people in our fire services should be incredibly proud of that. Of course, that all turned in December when we had our own issues in South Australia. It started in Yorketown and again the response from all over the state was immense. When we talk about our firefighting community, that incident and the response to that incident, really does showcase how well South Australia does step up and how well our firefighters in particular step up.

I was lucky enough to go to Yorke Peninsula, to the local football ground where everyone was stationed and stabled, and the efficiency and the logistics that were put in place are to be commended. I do not mean this flippantly, but it has become expected that these people will do great work. They do it with ease, without any fanfare and they put together a very good operation.

At this football ground, I spoke with the local mayor and the local chief executive of the council and they said how amazing it was to see all the fire trucks parked around the edge of the oval. The Salvation Army had set up their meal van and everyone was sitting in the grandstand eating their meals and that was the meeting point, if you like. They said it was so heartwarming to see all the trucks parked around the oval as if a game was being played, and trucks coming from brigades right across our state, and that really typifies our firefighting community here in South Australia.

Of course, Cudlee Creek and Kangaroo Island have been spoken about a lot. In the COVID-19 world that we are dealing with right now and the pandemic that is before us, perhaps some of that bushfire activity and the work that was done there has fallen off the radar of the mainstream media a little bit. I can assure you it has not fallen off my radar and it has not fallen off this government's radar; it is very much at the forefront.

We want to make sure that we can enact some of the findings of the reviews that are going on—the Keelty review, with Mick Keelty leading that, of course, and we hope to have that handed down by the middle of the year—and make sure that we put those processes in place for the upcoming fire season. You would understand that, in putting that review together in the current time, travel around the state, face-to-face contact and face-to-face community meetings have been put under pressure and in some cases are not possible. I must commend the team behind this. I have had reports that indicate copious one-on-one meetings, phone call meetings, webinar meetings, etc., to make up for the fact that access to meetings right around the country is somewhat limited.

Again, I commend our firefighters. I have seen things firsthand through the Adelaide Hills and Kangaroo Island. Some quite phenomenal stories have been relayed to me about families and generations learning their craft and learning what to do—fathers standing with sons, mothers standing with daughters and every combination in between—and how communities came together to fight those fires.

In the case of communities in particular, that is not just fighting fires with hose in hand. When fires are fought in our regional areas—it is very evident to me having grown up in the regions and having close associations and seeing it again through what we experienced over the summer—it is the community that fights a fire in every way, shape or form. Again, it is the literal holding of the hose at one end, but it is also everyone pulling together, be it through operations, incident management, supplying food, feeding and watering people or checking on people's mental health. It is the whole community that comes behind these firefighters, and I commend them all because they are all part of this firefighting family.

Speaking of the COVID-19 crisis and firefighters, we know the obvious, we see the obvious, and we commend all our firefighters around International Firefighters' Day for what they do and, again, take it to the next step, the next level. Around this COVID-19 situation, we know that Health has been the lead agency and it has set up the state control centre. Having been in there and worked my way through the centre—again, without much fanfare, the great work that our emergency services do in that space is very evident to me, to this government, and to the Premier.

In this case we are referring to the CFS, our Country Fire Service, and our Metropolitan Fire Service as well, and what they did as far as logistics are concerned. Again, we talk about firefighting and what we understand and perceive to be firefighting in the general community, but I can tell you that the work that goes on behind it—the incident management teams and the logistics work—is world class here in South Australia. People who operate at those ends of the spectrum when it comes to firefighting do an outstanding job, and the way they stepped up and slotted into the Health incident control centre really needs to be commended as well. They do it with little fanfare, but I know the people in Health are so appreciative in particular of what our emergency services have done; and in this case we are referring to our firefighters. I commend everyone for their outstanding work and efforts.

Along the way, I have been out in the community and I have been very privileged in this job to do this up until the COVID situation, which has made it harder to get out into the communities to see people face to face. Having said that, we have had lots of phone calls and webinars in that period. Before that, in the two years that I have been privileged to be in this role, I visited well over 100 brigades and stations and attended events around the CFS and MFS. Everyone I have met gives so much back to the community. Whether they are in a paid position or a volunteer position, they give back over and above. Again, we should be incredibly proud of what they do and the way they go about their business.

Let us not forget that, every time they go to work, every time they go out to do a job, every time they pull on the uniform and go out to help their community, there is a large element of risk. We acknowledge and very much thank them for taking on this role, for doing this role in our community and accepting this responsibility. I cannot thank them enough and I cannot thank their families enough.

I might conclude on that matter, and that is that the people who do this work—and I touched on it previously—are supported by their families. Often, their call-outs will be late at night, early in the morning, on a weekend or when there is a birthday party or a family event. They selflessly get up and go out and do their job helping their community. So on this occasion, when we recognise wonderful firefighters we have in South Australia, we should also acknowledge their families and again thank them for their great service.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON (Ramsay) (11:46): I rise to support the motion today. In the final months of 2019, we watched with horror as one of the worst fire seasons in history unfolded across our country. Fires raged across Australia, their sheer scale coming so early in the driest spring on record. It resulted in a tragic loss of life, property and native wildlife and vegetation. Fire and the managing of fire have long been part of the Australian narrative. Each year, on 4 May, we celebrate St Florian's Day to honour the amazing work of the paid and unpaid emergency services workers, whose job it is to protect us.

This year, I would like to take a moment to acknowledge female firefighters for emerging in greater numbers in our CFS and MFS ranks. The MFS launched its first diversity in recruitment campaign in 2018, and has been reaping the rewards ever since, with culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) and female applicants. Successful recruit numbers are rising significantly. In 2016, about 2 per cent of all paid and volunteer firefighters in South Australia were female; by 2019, this number had almost doubled. There was also a split between male and female applicants at 49 per cent, owing in great part to the greater growth and diversity in what was once considered a male-only role.

Reaching out to underrepresented groups is key to encouraging firefighting as a career for everyone. An increase in women joining our firefighting ranks does not mean lowering standards—physically, mentally, financially—let alone preventing men from joining. Rather, the aim is to broaden the net as wide as possible, as embracing diversity will make our fire services greater and better reflect the country that they bravely serve. Last year, the MFS celebrated not one but two examples of firefighters making history, with fathers and daughters serving together. Graham Lynch welcomed daughter Samantha as a new colleague, as did Phil White and his daughter Carly.

There is also an all-female Indigenous fire crew in Lake Tyers, Victoria, protecting community, family and sacred land. This fire crew is the first of its kind in Australia. Added to the list is 18-year-old Mikaela Ryan, a second-generation firey who, when she and her crew experienced a burnover (when a fire literally burns over the top of a crew), quickly used her training skills to pull together the cruise vehicles to protect them from wind gusts and debris that was blowing over them.

Here in South Australia, I would personally like to express gratitude to our paid and volunteer female firefighters for their contributions to the safety of our community. We have the likes of Hayley Slater, Lou Street, Aimee O'Grady, Claudia Ienco, Amani O'Brien, Tanya Hunt, Rebecca Schultz, Kerrie Scroop-Edwards, Sue Johnson and Tamara Haley, who are from the Salisbury Country Fire Service. They recently bravely battled blazes in the fire season of 2019-20. You can see that bravery is not gendered but is ingrained in our spirit to come together.

Moving forward towards the next fire season, I echo the demands for more support for our fireys, reminding everyone that there is more that we can do to support them. We can make their jobs easier by maintaining our properties, creating fire response action plans and sticking to them. We can donate or volunteer with our local brigades and commit to action when lives are at stake. In the meantime, I leave you with a quote from Vivien Thompson:

…in spite of the swollen eyes, singed hair, coming home from shifts smelly, dirty, exhausted and sometimes heartbroken: 'We are all going to be back out there the next day because this is something we just inherently do, as Australians.'

I support the motion.

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN (Stuart—Minister for Energy and Mining) (11:51): Of course I support this motion and anybody who has heard me speak on this topic or similar topics over the last 10 years would know that. I thank the member for Elizabeth for bringing this. He and I have probably talked on this topic more often than anybody else over for the last 10 years since we were elected, and I note how important it is that his motion is actually about firefighters. It is not about MFS or CFS. It is not about professional or volunteer. It is about firefighters and, as other speakers have mentioned, it is about men and women as firefighters.

I would add to that that it is actually about bringing children through the ranks as well. The CFS, particularly, has a very positive cadet program, where children, with the permission of their parents of course, are allowed to participate in a cadet program. They love it, and many of them go on to be fully fledged members of local brigades.

Unfortunately, we have to highlight from time to time the very significant emergencies and natural disasters that firefighters battle on behalf of the community, but I think it is also very important to point out that there are many endless, not so notable jobs that firefighters do for us. In fact, from a CFS perspective, I think approximately 60 per cent of the call-outs for CFS brigades are actually to motor vehicle accidents across the state.

Quite appropriately, quite naturally, we think of firefighters and MFS and CFS being connected directly with fire, which of course they are, but it is not only fire. I know that in my brigade, the Wilmington brigade, we have dealt with a lot of fires. The Woolundunga fire and the Bangor fire have probably been the two biggest, but we have had a couple of others in the Wirrabara Forest and the Bundaleer Forest. We have had many crop fires over time, and even the Pinery fire and the Sampson Flat fire came into the bottom end of Stuart. As a country member, I am not alone in this, but I suspect the electorate of Stuart has had more serious fires in the last 10 years than any other individual electorate, although we have all, of course, had serious ones.

But it is not just about the fires. It is about all sorts of call-outs. I have been to very tragic motor vehicle accidents. I should say, just for accuracy, I used to be a relatively active member of our brigade, and it would be important to point out that at the moment I am a relatively inactive member of our brigade, purely by virtue of the fact that I am not home enough. There is a huge amount of work that is done by firefighters.

We can also think of the sort of stereotypical, old-style, slightly amusing picture of two or three fire trucks in an urban environment somewhere to rescue a cat out of a tree for a little old lady. That is a nice comical image that we would have all grown up with, but it does demonstrate the breadth of very important work that firefighters do on our behalf. They do it in collaboration with other emergency services. They do it in collaboration with the police. They do it in collaboration with the SES, another incredibly important emergency response group, and others.

Another thing I would like to say in regard to my support for this motion is that CFS and MFS firefighting is a team sport. It really is a team sport. If you are a member of a brigade, you are a member of a team—a close member of a close team. If you are in one of those services, you are also a member of a very important and very tight-knit broader team and that should not be forgotten. I mention that for two reasons: firstly, it is necessary for those brigades and those services to be able to operate as well as they possibly can. If you do not have good team members in a good team, you are not going to be a very effective firefighter or other emergency responder.

The other reason I mention this is that being part of a team is another very important thing that these services offer to their members. It is an indirect outcome. It is not why people join, but it is an incredibly valuable outcome. I know so many people who are in both the MFS and CFS whose lives have been changed not purely because of the work they are doing, whether volunteer or professional, but because they are part of a really positive, really proactive, really constructive team. That is a very significant contribution that firefighting services offer to their members, which often can go unnoticed not by the members but by the broader community.

There are about 15,000 firefighters across the state in both services. Many of those people would not have experienced that close bond of working together before joining that service and I suspect that is very important in regard to why people stay with their brigades and stay with those services and keep doing the really good work that they do. There is a very important and positive human strength that comes from being part of a good team and these firefighting services offer that.

As one member mentioned, it used to be overwhelmingly male-dominated. There are now an enormous number of women and girls as cadets in the CFS. It is not to the same extent, but there are certainly women in the MFS as well. The percentage is not as high in the MFS as it is in the CFS and that is for quite understandable reasons, but they are both growing. They are both getting better and they are both very welcoming organisations for men and women who have the capacity and the right approach and want to be among their ranks.

If somebody else was going to pick their dream truck crew, I do not believe I would be in it, but if I were to pick who I would want to go and fight a serious fire with from my Wilmington brigade there would be one or two women in my brigade out of the four people in that truck without a doubt, so I am fully sold on the fact that women can contribute in this area equally, and sometimes better, than their male counterparts.

Both firefighting services are fantastic services. They contribute an enormous amount to our community well beyond just fighting fires. They welcome a wide spread of people to be part of them. I thank the member for Elizabeth for bringing this motion to this house and I wholeheartedly support it on behalf of the people of Stuart.

Mr BOYER (Wright) (11:59): I, too, rise to support this motion to show my support for our paid and volunteer firefighters, noting that 4 May was International Firefighters' Day. I thank the member for Elizabeth and shadow minister for emergency services for bringing this very important motion to the house and for providing us all with an opportunity to give our collective thanks to our firefighters.

International Firefighters' Day is an important day and one that I have now marked with my own very small tradition—a tradition for which I thank the Minister for Emergency Services for quite powerfully highlighting and cementing in place back in 2018. On this day, I visit my two local Metropolitan Fire Service stations—the Salisbury and Golden Grove units. I sit down with the crew members, I thank them for their service and bring along some doughnuts for them to enjoy. I also usually take that opportunity to ask them what more I can do, as a parliamentary representative in their area, to support them.

In addition to the very important and life-threatening tasks they undertake on a regular basis, which members have covered significantly in their contributions this morning, they also perform a very important role of community awareness and education of our young people. My three daughters, who have been through child care and kindergarten and are just starting school out in the north-east, have all been fortunate enough to have, I think, either the Golden Grove or Salisbury MFS attend their school or childcare centre, show them a fire truck and talk to them about the basics of how to protect themselves around fire. I think that is equally important.

I would also like to thank Denny and Angas from European Gourmet—which is a fantastic small business in St Agnes, as I am sure the member for Newland would agree—who provide me with doughnuts to give to the MFS crews every year. We will never forget the summer of bushfires that communities across our state have just endured. From Eyre Peninsula to Yorke Peninsula and Cudlee Creek to the catastrophic Kangaroo Island blaze, not to mention the South-East too, it is fair to say that our whole state was affected by the most recent bushfire season.

There was, of course, loss of life, land and livestock, the effects of which are going to be felt for generations to come. There was also an incredible toll on our Country Fire Service volunteers, the Metropolitan Fire Service and environment department firefighters, as well as small firefighting units. They are the people driving out to those fronts. They are flying waterbombers into what looks like a midnight sky in the middle of the day. It is those men and women who are working in headquarters and regional officers are planning, mapping and working out how we tackle these enormous blazes.

It would be remiss of me not to thank the wonderful volunteers protecting us in the north and north-eastern suburbs in particular. To those volunteers from the Salisbury and Tea Tree Gully units based within the Para group headquartered out of the One Tree Hill station, we say thank you. To those units within the Gumeracha group, the Hermitage, Cudlee Creek, Paracombe and Birdwood units, headquartered out of the Gumeracha station, we say thank you.

Whilst it is important to recognise those who continue to protect us, International Firefighters' Day is also a day to remember those who did not make it home—those who made the ultimate sacrifice in the pursuit to keep their families, our families, friends and neighbours safe. There are families in South Australia and across the country forever changed and grieving because they lost a loved one who went to work and did not come home.

Growing up on a family farm surrounded by bushland made me acutely aware of the dangers of bushfires. I was used to the attention given to weather forecasts and the preparations for a quick escape should fire threaten. The checking of water pumps and water supplies and the shifting of stock to safe paddocks was practically a daily occurrence during periods of high fire danger. The importance of firefighters and the role they play in our community, and the commitment they make to keep as safe, is something that I have always valued.

I think it is interesting to note, in these days of significant climate change and catastrophic fire episodes, how fire has penetrated beyond the bush into the city fringe and into the consciousness and physical space of urban dwellers more than it has before. Worryingly, fire is no longer something to be faced in the bush; indeed, it is increasingly present in all our lives.

For that reason, I think I speak on behalf of every South Australian when I express my gratitude to those who put themselves in danger on a regular basis in order to keep us safe. I make this commitment: to do all that I can, as long as I remain a member of this place, to make sure that our firefighters, whether they be paid or volunteers, are as well equipped as possible as they go about providing this essential community service. I commend the motion to the house.

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER (Morialta—Minister for Education) (12:04): I am really pleased to have the opportunity to rise today to speak in support of the motion that notes that 4 May is International Firefighters' Day. The motion goes on to express the gratitude of this house to all of our paid and volunteer firefighters in South Australia for their contribution to the safety of our community, and the motion concludes by remembering the sacrifice of those firefighters who have lost their lives in service of their community.

As others have done, I want to reflect on the summer that has just passed, the fires that have ravaged our communities and the extraordinary contribution that our firefighters—our paid firefighters, our volunteer firefighters and those farm firefighting units that have supported so many people through our state—have made to protecting life and to protecting property in our community, in our state and in our nation.

Of course, many firefighters over the years have lost their lives in that pursuit. The fact that our firefighters, whether volunteer or professional, know of the dangers they go into when they are performing their tasks I think only goes to underscore the importance and significance of their contribution. Through the opportunities provided by the house this year I have already spoken a couple of times about the Cudlee Creek fires, which were so traumatic for so many in my community in the seat of Morialta over the summer.

I believe that there is a motion where I will have the opportunity to provide a more fulsome description, but I did want to take the opportunity that this motion provides to reflect briefly on our firefighters. There are people who, on 20 December last year, woke up in the morning, went to work, whether on their farm or in the city, as our peri-urban area allows them to, and through the course of that day had their lives irrevocably changed.

Everyone in the world at the moment, everyone in our state, has had their lives changed to some extent by COVID-19, but the extent of the Cudlee Creek fires, the most significant fire event in that community really since Ash Wednesday, was certainly for many people in those communities and many young people in our schools the most significant fire event of their lifetime. I do not think we can understate the significance of that. The fact that it has been compounded in the effect that it has had on people by the COVID-19 pandemic cannot be understated.

There is work that we are doing to support those communities now, but the work that was done in the immediate response by our CFS, our emergency services and the farm firefighting units was profound. There are people who to this day, in my community and the communities in the member for Kavel's electorate and the southern end of the member for Newland's electorate and the western end of the member for Hammond's electorate that were impacted by this fire, still have on their front fences and on their letterboxes signs thanking the CFS for what they did to protect their properties. There are people whose properties were thankfully not affected but who nevertheless worked their guts out for 36 hours and then in the weeks following, after they maybe got some sleep, continued to get on the backs of their farm firefighting units to go into harm's way to protect property and life.

One of many significant stories that came out of this was one told to me by a school principal in the Hills, who was reflecting on a 10-year-old child. The CFS volunteers got to the property knowing that the parents were quite concerned that they did not have their child with them and found their 10-year-old child holding a hose, working to protect a shed, firing water at the flames, protecting a shed in the backyard. The CFS were able to take over, and the child was safe and he is back at school.

Those are the sorts of experiences I did not have when I was 10 years old, and I suspect not too many in the chamber did, although I recognise particularly the service of people who have been paid firefighters in their past and indeed those who continue as volunteers in this house. We can only imagine the sorts of memories that will create for a 10 year old. I pay credit to all the young people who fought the fires and who are cadets in our CFS units. Hopefully, the community will continue as they have done so far to rally around those young people to mitigate the effects of the blazes.

The firefighters who put themselves in harm's way protected lives and they protected communities. They deserve our thanks, our credit and our recognition. After a summer like we have just had, I do not think that there is any member in this house who would doubt the importance of this motion today. I commend it to the house.

Mr HUGHES (Giles) (12:10): I rise, too, to say a few words on the amazing efforts over the last firefighting season of both volunteers and professional firefighters. As has been said by others, the strong support offered in this place is universal. Clearly, some members have been impacted more than others by the fires on Kangaroo Island, with a loss of life; the fires in the South-East, where over 20,000 hectares were destroyed; the earlier fires on Yorke Peninsula; and of course Cudlee Creek, where there was also a loss of life and an extensive loss of people's homes and outbuildings. Those things can be rebuilt, which is not to say that the impact is not major when you lose everything you have, but it is the loss of life that really sticks out.

When you look at what happened nationally over that period, 33 people died and 10 million hectares of bush and farming properties were destroyed by fire. Over 3,000 homes and many thousands of outbuildings were lost nationally, not to mention the impact on native flora and fauna. Even though the Australian bush bounces back, given the intensity of the fires on this occasion there might well be a loss of species and habitats in areas that might be fundamentally transformed. It was a shocking summer.

In my electorate, there were a number of fires. I remember being in my backyard, which has a view over a long distance. There was a lot of dry lightning. I knew there were going to be fires in the area, and certainly there were beyond the Middleback Ranges in some of the pastoral areas of my electorate. It was once again the people from Cowell, Kimba, Whyalla and Cleve, which is outside my electorate, who worked together with emergency services and councils to contain those fires and protect property. Fortunately, given the nature of the area, no properties were lost and no lives were lost. Certainly, in comparison with what was happening elsewhere, it was nowhere near on the same horrendous scale.

There are other areas in my electorate that are subject to fire. A few years ago in the member for Stuart's electorate, there were extensive fires in the southern Flinders Ranges, which went on for weeks with a lot of loss and a lot of impact. In my part of the area, the volunteers in places like Quorn and Hawker make a real contribution. We should never forget the fact that these people are volunteers. Clearly, the professional firefighters put their lives at risk and make an enormous contribution but, in regional South Australia and regional Australia, to a large extent we depend upon volunteers to do a lot of that work.

What is deeply concerning is that I know the federal government was warned that we were likely to have incredibly serious bushfires, the intensity of which we had not seen before. It is unfortunate that those warnings were ignored. All of those professional firefighters wanted to meet with the Prime Minister and others and that did not happen.

All the evidence indicates that fire seasons are growing in length and that the intensity and duration of drought is going to increase over time, especially in south-eastern Australia. That is going to have a major impact. It might give us pause to consider how we assist volunteers more fully when it comes to tackling some of these incredibly serious challenges that we have faced not just recently but are going to face in the future.

Our over-reliance on volunteers over what might well become very extensive periods of time needs to be examined. That is not to say that we move away from a volunteer approach, where people have those commitments to their communities and their regions—it is incredibly important and we cannot replace that—but there does need to be far more support than is provided currently.

I will conclude by saying that it is not just praise and support from this house and from other houses that our volunteers and our professional firefighters need; they need tangible support to do their job. One thing I should mention, and it is something that was cut and that I think the government should revisit, is the farm firefighting units. They were very important. In speaking to some of the people on Kangaroo Island who lost some of their outbuildings or some other parts of their property and others who did not lose these, they talked about the importance of farm firefighting units that saved their properties and saved lives.

I would call upon the government to look at what was being done under the previous government when it came to tangible support, and I would argue that that tangible support should be extended beyond what we did as a government, good though that was. It was a very worthwhile program. It is one of those practical things that we can do in terms of assistance to protect lives and properties and it is one way of assisting the volunteers who are doing the incredibly hard work, putting their lives on the line when it comes to fighting fires.

Mr McBRIDE (MacKillop) (12:18): I rise to speak in support of the motion brought to this house by the member for Elizabeth and thank him for his motion. International Firefighters' Day is a day the community honours those firefighters who have lost their lives in the line of duty. This important day has been commemorated since 4 May 1999, when International Firefighters' Day was first celebrated, and has been used to remember and honour our fallen firefighters since that time.

Internationally, the symbol for the day is a distinctive blue and red ribbon, the colour blue representing water and red representing fire, with the combined colours being recognised around the world as a symbol for the emergency services. This year, although it has not been possible to assemble to commemorate the day in person, people have been able to undertake their own commemorations. A focal point for commemorations in our state and in my electorate of MacKillop in recent years has been enabled by the vision of the South Australian Volunteer Fire Fighters Museum committee.

The vision of this group, along with a lot of hard work fundraising and in negotiations, has enabled a firefighter memorial to be built in Naracoorte, with the first service held in 2016. The memorial commemorates the loss of 15 registered volunteer firefighters from across the state who have died in the carriage of their duties. Each year, South Australian volunteer firefighters invite the public to share in a memorial service to remember those who have lost their lives. Wreaths are laid at the memorial and a silent remembrance is observed. This year, the memorial service had to be cancelled, but a wreath was laid and flags flown at half-mast to remember those who have lost their lives.

The dedication to ensure the establishment of the memorial at Naracoorte was a long run effort, 18 years in the making. The memorial today is a testament to the fundraising and coordination of the Volunteer Fire Fighters Museum members. It is a local dedicated member, such as Rex Hall, a South Australian volunteer firefighter stalwart, along with the work of a dedicated team, who has seen the vision come into being. The South Australian Volunteer Fire Fighters Museum committee have continued their dedication to ensuring that our state remembers firefighters who have lost their lives, and are committed to ensuring that the history of our volunteer firefighters is preserved. The objective is to record, conserve and promote the history and equipment of the South Australian volunteer fire service.

I was also pleased to see the long run of efforts of this group come to fruition this year, on the anniversary of the Ash Wednesday fire, when I attended the opening of stage 1 of the museum by the member for Barker, Tony Pasin. Stage 1 of the museum has been made possible through the funding and support of the federal government. The museum, which includes a collection of memorabilia, including photos and many fire trucks, is a significant reminder to the community of the Limestone Coast and our state that the service of our volunteer firefighters is highly valued. I look forward to continuing to work with this group, and I hope to see stage 2 of the museum come to fruition.

The 2019-20 summer was a time that brought so much devastation to our nation, our state and our local communities. It has been a time that has brought the images and stories of our firefighters to the front of mind for our community. It is a time that impacted on so many directly, as well as on a great many others who saw the devastation from across the country—images which streamed for seemingly months on our televisions and social media feeds. I believe that, for many in our community who were not directly impacted, these images have helped to develop an appreciation of the difficult and frightening conditions that our firefighters face in seeking to protect life and property.

This period has seen our firefighters deservedly recognised for their skills, commitment and courage. The recent fire events have given our communities a new and profound appreciation of the work of our firefighters, both paid and volunteer, and exposed us all to the harsh realities and dangers faced by these people. These people have our gratitude. The fires across our state and in my electorate of MacKillop were fought by both paid firefighting professionals and a great many volunteers.

The role of volunteers and paid CFS crews in fighting a range of fires in our region is much appreciated. It helped to avoid substantially higher losses of property and livestock. I thank those who played their role on CFS trucks, those who managed logistics, the people who flew the aerial spotters and water bombers, right through to the farm fire units taking a role in mopping up. It was truly a collaborative effort.

We know from CFS modelling of the Keilira fire that, had the intensive efforts of the firefighting crews on 30 December not been effective, the fire may have travelled much further south; fanned by a howling northerly on that day, it had the potential to threaten the township of Lucindale. While there were significant stock and property losses sustained, significantly more losses were avoided through the work of those firefighters. Thankfully, no lives were lost.

The service of firefighters during the summer in many cases extended well beyond their own localities and saw firefighting crews deployed to other states and other regions. I am aware, just in my region, of crews being deployed to New South Wales to assist with their fires, only to return to be part of the fire response at Keilira and in no time at all being further deployed to assist in fighting the devastating Kangaroo Island fires. These people worked hard, long hours and sacrificed time with their families, friends, work and communities to play a role and use their skills to help quell the devastating fires. These people do their bit, supported by their employers and families, to take a front-line role in the protection of our communities, key assets, livestock and wildlife.

Sadly, this summer saw the loss of life of nine firefighters across Australia. Given the current unprecedented circumstances in which our country finds itself under the COVID-19 pandemic, it is important that we remember the sacrifices that have been made by these people and their families, for whom grief is still raw.

International Firefighters' Day on 4 May provided an opportunity to pause to reflect on the loss of firefighters and, more broadly, their value to our community. We are grateful for the work of all the paid and volunteer firefighters in South Australia in their contribution to the safety of our community. It is not just recent times that have highlighted the role of firefighters; for some, it is the ultimate price that they have paid for their work.

In his book, Looking Back: History of CFS, SA Country Fire Service, member of the firefighters volunteer association of Naracoorte, former CFS member, recipient of the Australian Fire Service Medal and current SA Volunteer Fire Fighters Museum committee member Rex Hall has captured stories of some of the state's significant fires that devastated both lives and property. It is a couple of these local stories that I would briefly reflect on.

It is the very nature of Limestone Coast's natural assets, including its pine forests and native vegetation, that the threat of fire has always loomed as a significant danger. The Wandilo Forest tragedy was one of the worst ever losses of firefighters in our state. It is an event that is still remembered by many to this day. The forest fire occurred on 8 April 1958. A story told by CFS volunteer and historian Ron Telford in Rex Hall's book tells the devastating story about the Wandilo fire. I quote from this book:

The fire started at about 10.45 am in strong north-north westerly winds and it quickly entered pine plantations. Forest and EFS units were dispatched and were soon on the scene, where they entered a plantation break.

A firestorm developed, catching the fire crew and trucks by surprise and in their efforts to escape, two forestry units were bogged in soft sand, another damaged a gearbox and could not move. Two fire fighters escaped by crouching down in a truck cab, one other survived by lying in a wheel rut, but eight others tragically lost their lives.

Those who lost their lives were local men from Nangwarry, Tantanoola, Glencoe and Glencoe West. This history provides another reminder of the ultimate price that can be paid by our firefighters who readily step up to fight fires in dangerous circumstances. Today, a monument and plaque at the forest memorialise those men.

It is a testament to the growth in understanding of fire management, fire safety, our enhanced capacity to fight fires and protective measures for our firefighters that a similar fire more than 40 years later resulted in no lives being lost in the same pine forest at Wandilo in 2000. In that year, fire started in the Wandilo forest. The fire coincidentally involved a burnover in similar weather conditions to that of the 1958 fire, involving three vehicles with crew in a location only about half a kilometre from the 1958 burnover. Thankfully, this fire, despite difficult conditions, resulted in no lives being lost.

The Ash Wednesday fires of 16 February 1983 were also fought in dangerous conditions, with high temperatures, driving northerly winds and low humidity that followed a significant dry period that left our landscape tinder dry. The Ash Wednesday fires left a lasting legacy across our state. On this day in South Australia 28 people died, including three Country Fire Service volunteers. The damage to the community was significant, with 1,500 people injured, 388 homes lost and 200 buildings destroyed.

Fast-forward and our state's firefighters have played a key role in countless fires: the Sherwood fire, the South-East fire, the Bangor fire, the 2007 Kangaroo Island fire and the Sampson Flat and Pinery fires in 2015 to name a few. Unfortunately, with these fires come risks for our firefighters. It is fortunate that we have an enduring and skilled paid and volunteer firefighting force, which continues to build its knowledge in effective firefighting and fire management to assist our state to better plan for future fires.

At this time, the value and appreciation of the work and courage of firefighters has never been clearer, nor has the value of the sacrifice of those who have lost their lives. I commend the motion to the house.

Ms WORTLEY (Torrens) (12:28): I rise to give my support to the motion moved by the shadow minister for emergency services:

That this house—

(a) notes that 4 May is International Firefighters' Day;

(b) expresses its gratitude to all of our paid and volunteer firefighters in South Australia for their contribution to the safety of our community; and

(c) remembers the sacrifice of those firefighters who have lost their lives in service of their community.

The tireless, selfless work of our firefighters cannot be overstated. The Kangaroo Island bushfires of December and January were fiercer than anyone could have imagined. They brought normal life and business to a standstill for a month. They resulted in loss of life, they destroyed homes and businesses, they devastated wildlife and stock and they wiped out our iconic Australian tourist resort.

Fires also caused devastation to the Adelaide Hills, from Cudlee Creek to Lenswood, Lobethal, Woodside and as far as Mount Torrens, and all the time on the ground were our firefighters. The stories told of the eight Kangaroo Island bushfires that just kept gaining strength when they appeared to be under control and joining together at different points to become superbushfires are really terrifying.

We heard about the walls of flame, the unparalleled speed of these fires, heat that wiped out wild and domestic animals where they stood, and the frightening roar heard across the island. All the while firefighters, both volunteer and professional, were out there standing and defending for the people of those areas, for the people of South Australia and, in fact, right across Australia.

It was a heartwarming experience to visit Kangaroo Island and see all the signs that were made, particularly by local schoolchildren, saying thank you to our firefighters. They were right across the island—out the front of schools and businesses—and there were many of them. I know the people of Kelly Road, Cudlee Creek, certainly felt the need to express their gratitude, which was really beautifully demonstrated to anyone who was driving through after the fires were brought under control. They put a notice next to the road sign that said 'Thank you CFS. All our Kelly Road homes saved. Bloody legends.' That is what our firefighters are to people, particularly those having experienced those fires this past summer.

It is also really important to recognise that while the fires are occurring, while the flames are burning, there are families who are so worried about their firefighter family members who are out there in danger. The partners of firefighters, and their children, parents, brothers, sisters and friends, know that they are being confronted with the very real dangers of what can very often be a life and death situation.

Also, when the fires are finally out I know that a lot of these people, a lot of the emergency service workers and their families, have to live with the memories and the impact of those. So today I would also like to recognise that, while the flames are out, some of the consequences of those experiences live on. A tribute today to our firefighters, both professional and voluntary, is very worthwhile and I thank the member for putting it forward.

The Hon. T.J. WHETSTONE (Chaffey—Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development) (12:32): I would like to rise and speak on this motion. It is an important motion and it is important that we recognise our firefighters both locally, here in South Australia, and those who have come from far away, other states, other brigades who have come to help and to lighten the burden of what has been an horrific fire season. By and large, it has impacted on the majority of the regions around South Australia.

It would be hard to say where it all started, but last year it started earlier than usual, and we saw a number of fires—the Yorketown fires that impacted on that community and those farmers and the well-documented fires in Cudlee Creek and Kangaroo Island. They were unprecedented. The fire continued to burn with the unprecedented wind shifts that were unfavourable to our firefighters, who rose above to give us protection as best they could. Sadly, there was significant impact and damage, and some people's lives changed forever. The fires down at Keilira in the South-East also had a major impact, as did other fires on Eyre Peninsula.

I was privileged to visit all those firegrounds and show a level of support to those families and the communities who had been impacted. But I must say that the majority of the impacted farms and scrub, forests and parks that were severely burnt and impacted will take a considerable amount of time not only to regrow but to be rebuilt and managed once again.

We know that we have to learn from every fire, as do our firefighters. Our firefighters are passionate once they get out there. Not only are they protecting their community but they are out there risking their lives to protect our communities and our homes. There are none more documented than the unprecedented Kangaroo Island and Cudlee Creek fires.

That does not detract from any of the other fires that severely impacted other areas, but I do want to touch on some of the opportunities where I was able to offer support and give hope to some of those communities. Some of them were severely impacted and burnt, and they thought there would be no coming back. Some were insured, some were not insured, but the firefighters did not draw a line in the sand as to who they protected and who they did not. They went out there to do the best job they could in an unprecedented time.

I was able to be part of the Hahndorf meeting to address impacted businesses as part of the Cudlee Creek response, particularly the businesses, the vineyards and the cellar doors that were very heavily impacted up there. It was an outstanding community coming together and industry coming together. We listened to some of the experiences others had gone through with similar fires, and the Sampson Flat fires comes to mind. The stories they told really left an impression on those who had been freshly burnt that there was hope, that there were ways to better manage and ways to rebuild.

But, more importantly, sharing the stories gave people a target. They went home but did not say that their vineyard was destroyed; they went home, cut the vines down low to allow them to reshoot and regrow, and the vines need to be re-trellised. It gave them an opportunity to say that not all is lost. It was a very successful meeting, not only for giving people the information they needed but they also walked away with a level of confidence that they could rebuild their businesses, their vineyards and their cellar doors and start again.

These meetings were set up with PIRSA and animal organisations, and there was another very good community meeting at Woodside. It gave people a better understanding of how to look after their livestock, stocking rates and a very clear undertaking that they have to feed these animals, and whether they are sheep, cattle or domesticated pets, it all comes at a cost. We know that some of the feedstocks were at low levels, but it gave people an understanding. Firefighters attending the meeting also told very graphic stories of what they had had to undertake with PIRSA animal health officers in putting animals down that had been too badly impacted.

That is another part of what the firefighters and our emergency service dedicated teams had to do: not just fight the fires. They had to put their arms around people who had lost everything, they had to give advice and they had to help with the euthanasing of animals. It showed the importance of what the firefighters and those emergency service workers did. While we were at Woodside we were joined by Twiggy Forrest, a very wealthy Australian who is the chair of the Minderoo philanthropic arm of his organisation.

He has put $70 million into a fire fund dealing with the rehabilitation of animals and making sure that we can show a level of care and consideration for animal welfare. He is a great Australian and he is working for the benefit of Australia to show the world that we have good animal welfare structures in place. He has a large amount of money to help with that—I must say it helped particularly with wildlife but, more importantly, it was about the amount of decimation to the koala population in South Australia—and I think that needs to be commended.

I would also like to pay tribute to the farmers and their communities for their firefighting efforts off the back of their utes, or coordinating with the firefighters, and the outstanding work they did in filling in gaps that our firefighters were not able to. Farmers were trying to protect their farms and look after their neighbours or their community farms. It was an outstanding commitment they gave, and they, too, risked life and limb to protect their farms, their communities, their neighbours and their friends. I pay tribute to them.

I will touch on the outstanding work done after the clean-up—the rebuilding and the fences that had to be replaced. BlazeAid, a volunteer organisation that came into the fray, have been here in South Australia. Nationally, they have been rebuilding fences, talking to those communities and being a part of a community. They have come in and not only are they rebuilding but they are showing a significant amount of commitment to being a part of that community while they are there, to be interacting with barbeques and those community events that happened directly after the fires.

I would like to touch on some of the firefighting efforts, particularly in the electorate of Chaffey, and I applaud their courageous efforts as well. I thank all firefighters, past and present, as well as the emergency services. We know that all those fires were attended by a number of Riverland brigades to lend a hand. The many brigades in the electorate of Chaffey in South Australia meant that the Riverland local firefighters were also part of that firefighting effort right across country. I know that a number of them not only travelled South Australia but also moved their way interstate.

For the many fires that they continued to fight to protect those communities, there are a number of worthy mentions, some having done an outstanding job over a long period of time: David Shaw has given 15 years of service to the MFS; Steve Lynch (old Lynchy) has done 15 years of service to the MFS; Kevin and Alan Eckermann, collectively (this is an outstanding story) 100 years of service between the two brothers for the state's firefighting agencies, an outstanding effort; Michael Biele, 10 years of service; Nick Uren, 10 years of service; Monica Hawker, also 10 years of service; Cameron McNaughton, awarded the retained senior firefighter in 2020; Brian Gates, promoted to a senior firefighter this year; the Renmark MFS, first place in the 2019 operations command regional audit; and, the Berri MFS, placed second in the 2019 operations command regional audit. These are all outstanding organisations, backed up with volunteers.

Time expired.

The Hon. A. PICCOLO (Light) (12:42): I look forward to speaking in support of this motion, and I also commend members on both sides of the chamber for their comments on this matter. I will not seek to repeat some of the great stories we have heard this morning about our firefighters and other emergency service workers. I would like to emphasise something perhaps a little bit different: 4 May is one of the most important days on the calendar for our emergency services as it marks the feast day of St Florian, the patron saint of firefighters and other emergency services workers.

In Gawler, on Monday 4 May an informal, impromptu ceremony was held in the morning in Pioneer Park to mark St Florian's Day. Representatives from the Concordia Country Fire Service brigade, represented by Brigade Captain Robert Borgo, senior firefighter Matthew Williamson from the Gawler Metropolitan Fire Service, John Lawrence from the State Emergency Services and South Australia Police inspector Shane Addison laid a wreath, along with me, to mark and honour the lives of those emergency service workers given in the course of their duty. The wreath also represented those people who have lost their lives during fire and other disasters.

It is very important to remember that lives are lost across a whole range of disasters in our community, and only yesterday another life, unfortunately, was lost due to a house fire in Adelaide. The Gawler RSL allowed the service to take place at the memorial, and they were represented by their Vice President, Mr Pat Adams. The service was only a very simple one to mark the occasion, because the COVID-19 health restrictions prevented any broad community-based event from taking place. The ceremony is both a thanksgiving and memorial event, held to thank those emergency services workers who help keep our community safe and a memorial to those who lost their lives in natural disasters such as fires and floods.

While it was initially a day of commemoration for firefighters, in more recent times it has included other emergency services workers. As we have seen over the last few decades, they work very closely together during times of crisis. Each emergency service might play a different role but all are critical to maintaining community safety.

St Florian's feast day is also celebrated as International Firefighters' Day, which was instituted in 1999 following the deaths of five firefighters in a wildfire in Linton, Victoria. While the commemoration services have been held at the national level for some years, no local ceremonies have taken place. This year was to mark the first community-based ceremony but unfortunately, as I said, the health crisis prevented that. However, a simple and respectful ceremony did take place at 7am on Monday 4 May in Pioneer Park. Plans for a community-based event had commenced earlier in the year but had to be shelved as the enormity of the coronavirus became evident.

I look forward, as do other community leaders, to soon working with all local emergency services to start planning for a much bigger community-based event in 2021. I believe that with a bit more time and the capacity of volunteers to participate with career workers in the emergency services—and I think we should also include other emergency services workers—we will have a very respectful event next year. I will put out this call: that services that wish to be involved in the planning and participation of the 2021 ceremony in my community are invited to contact my electoral office and we will work alongside them.

St Florian was born around 250 CE in present-day Austria and was responsible for the organisation and training of elite soldiers for the sole purpose of fighting fires. Florian himself rose through the military ranks to become commander of the imperial army in Noricum. He became a martyr after refusing to participate in the persecution and sacrifice of Christians under his authority, resulting in his execution at the hands of the Romans.

St Florian's feast day is also celebrated as International Firefighters' Day, which is the subject matter of this motion. I thank my colleague, the member for Elizabeth, for bringing this to parliament today. As I mentioned, International Firefighters' Day was instituted in 1999 following the deaths of firefighters in Victoria.

St Florian's death is particularly resonant with those in our firefighting community, as he stood by and ultimately lost his life for the same humane beliefs and values that are shared by firefighters today. The day is marked by the adornment of red and blue ribbons, symbolising the elements of fire and water, which firefighters and other emergency services workers work with.

I would also like to acknowledge the contribution made to our emergency services workers by their respective support organisations. I would like to acknowledge the work done by the Country Fire Service Volunteer Association, the State Emergency Service Volunteers Association, the United Fire Fighters Union, the Public Service Association and the Police Association for the support those associations provide to their volunteers and career workers. On behalf of my community, I would like to express my deepest gratitude to our firefighters and other emergency services workers for their efforts in protecting us, our town, state and country from extreme weather and other disasters.

Mr TEAGUE (Heysen) (12:49): I take the chance to rise very briefly and not to repeat the very important contributions that have been made by a number of members to this worthy motion but to further emphasise the importance of the motion in recognising, as it does, 4 May as International Firefighters' Day.

I want to draw particular attention to, recognise and thank the work of the CFS Chief Officer, Mark Jones, who perhaps in many ways might best personify the spirit of this day in the past season we have just seen. Let's not forget that Chief Officer Jones took up his role in October last year. It was to be a season that we have not seen for many decades in terms of the magnitude of fires, not just in our state but nationally. He took on the role at a time when 1,300 volunteer firefighters went to Queensland and New South Wales before our season had even started, and then he had the task to oversee the effort of both paid and volunteer firefighters responding to the worst fire season that we have experienced in decades.

As he acknowledged in his open letter to the community on 30 April, just a few days ago, we lost too many homes—179 homes lost—and we lost three lives in the course of all of that devastation. It was in the Adelaide Hills and it was devastating on Kangaroo Island, but let's not forget, it was also in the South-East of the state at Keilira, on Yorke Peninsula, as well as the emergency that affected Port Lincoln, so we have had a very difficult season this year and, in the course of the global pandemic that we are currently struggling with, we have moved from one devastating set of natural circumstances to another.

In addressing that period of time, perhaps one way to bring it home locally is that very early on in his tenure, Chief Officer Mark Jones attended and presided over celebrations of the Macclesfield Brigade's 80th anniversary at Macclesfield. That happened in early December, I think it was 8 December, at a time when we were recognising the very large number of members of that brigade who had already gone to volunteer interstate and, as we reflected on it, the way that brigade responded from 20 December onwards and then around the state. I want to draw particular attention to the important leadership of Chief Officer Mark Jones and all of his colleagues in leading the way for a truly extraordinary, both volunteer and paid firefighting effort over the course of this last fire season.

Mr DULUK (Waite) (12:52): I would also like to say a few words regarding the motion before us, and I thank the member for Elizabeth for moving this most important motion. As so many members have touched on today and this morning, the 2019-20 fire season was devastating for South Australia. So many of our firefighters, paid and volunteered, put their lives on the line to serve our community, as they do every single day, year in, year out. In my own community, I put on the record my thanks to the Sturt CFS group led by the captain of the group, Dale Thompson, and the brigades that make up that group: Blackwood, Eden Hills, Belair, Coromandel Valley, Cherry Gardens and Upper Sturt, which is a brigade that the member for Heysen and I share as a common boundary.

Importantly, COVID-19 has changed so much in the world today. For the Blackwood CFS it certainly curtailed their celebration of 70 years of the brigade. I know that members of the brigade, led by Captain Jamie Emswiler, were really looking forward to celebrating 70 years of that wonderful brigade in the community, and to thank their members past and present for the work they have done and continue to do on behalf of our community. To the Blackwood CFS, apologies that we have not been able to officially celebrate the 70th birthday of the brigade but I thank all those members who serve in that unit.

Also, more broadly, I thank everyone who continues to look after us, particularly those who in historic times lost their lives in the line of duty and, importantly, those paid and volunteer members who sustained a workplace injury as a result of their firefighting efforts. We must always look after those emergency service personnel who look after our community so wonderfully well.

The Hon. L.W.K. BIGNELL (Mawson) (12:54): I rise, too, to place on the record my thanks to the wonderful men and women of our firefighting units right around South Australia, whether they be in the MFS, the CFS or those very important farm firefighters, who do such a wonderful job in all parts of our state in getting onto fires early, getting out into terrain that sometimes the big vehicles cannot get to and really playing a major role.

As people have mentioned already, we had a catastrophic fire season during the last summer. There were so many fires right throughout the state, including the devastating ones on Kangaroo Island, where two farm firefighters, Dick and Clayton Lang, lost their lives on that terrible night when half the island was on fire and the other half of the island had been pretty much evacuated. When you are talking about an island of 4½ thousand square kilometres, those firefighters did an amazing job, both those based on the island, who live there, and those who came from as far away as Arkaroola and Roxby Downs.

I was out there at the base camp and talked to people from all around South Australia, including over at Tumby Bay and Eyre Peninsula, Yorke Peninsula and down in the South-East. They are people who have gone through their own difficulties over the years fighting fires in their own backyards. They got on their trucks, got on the ferry and came across to Kangaroo Island and really played a major role in helping put out those fires, which took weeks and weeks to put out. They were incredibly persistent fires. The wind changes kept flaring them up, putting people's lives and properties in danger week after week after week.

To all those people who came to fight the fires, thank you, and thanks to all the people who played support roles as well. It was incredible to see people pretty much close up their businesses, and get in and play roles as logistics officers. They are really important people, people who are locals, who know the lie of the land and know where to find a house for people to stay in. I want to mention Mary-Lou Corcoran, the General Manager of the Aurora Ozone Hotel in Kingscote, and also Shauna Black from KI Plantation Timbers.

These are people who put on the bibs that said 'liaison officer' or 'logistics officer' and played really important support roles to find beds and accommodation for these people. Thanks to the schoolteachers who went out in the middle of the night and opened up school halls so that sleeping bags and mattresses could be laid out so that the volunteers had somewhere to stay. It was so important that the firefighters had that level of support. I feel sorry for our volunteers at the moment because these people come together every week or every second week for their training and the camaraderie that that brings all year round, not just when there is a fire on. They are missing this because they cannot gather in large groups at the moment.

I had an unfortunate experience on 4 May, International Firefighters' Day. I was at the Aldinga CFS fire station. Normally it is a good thing to be there, but I was there because someone had broken in and stolen $10,000 worth of equipment from them. That is a really low act, a despicable act, hitting people who do so much for our community. Not only did they upset the volunteers, who give so much, but they also put people's lives in danger. They stole equipment that needed to go out on trucks to motor vehicle accidents and the like.

While we are talking about Aldinga CFS, I would like to pay my respects to Kevin Hutton, a long-term Aldinga CFS volunteer firefighter who did so much for the Aldinga community. He lost his life just two weeks ago, a very sad occasion for the Aldinga community. My condolences to his wife and family. Kevin did such a great job.

Mr ODENWALDER (Elizabeth) (12:59): I want to thank all members. I apologise to the member for Mawson, who I am sure has a lot more to say. I am sure we will find many more opportunities to say those things. I do have some observations to make, but I want to wrap it up now so that we can vote on this today, so that all firefighters can have no doubt that we are as one in this house in our thanks and gratitude for the work they do. I commend the motion to the house.

Motion carried.

Sitting suspended from 12:59 to 14:00.

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