Christopher Back (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the Senate for the opportunity to speak on the Esperance fires, which will be the subject of a motion this afternoon by all of Western Australia's senators. I seek the indulgence of the chamber to wear what was part of my uniform as chief executive of the Bush Fires Board of Western Australia simply to recognise the contribution of firefighters throughout Australia, particularly volunteers, and those who support them.

This horrific fire, the worst for 50 years in Western Australia, began on 15 November as a result of lightning strike in crown land around the area of Cascade and Scaddan to the north of Esperance. Over the last few days there have been three major fires: the Cascade-Scaddan fire of some 137,000 hectares, the Merivale fire to the east of Esperance of some 18,000 hectares and, further to the east, the Cape Arid National Park, which was the subject again of lightning strike and fire of some 160,000 hectares—totalling in excess of 300,000 hectares burnt. To put that into context, it exceeds the entire area of the ACT, but it is only about six per cent of the entire area of the Esperance shire.

I want to record my condolence on the death of four people in the Cascade-Scaddan fire. Firstly, Mr Kym Curnow, better known in his local community as Freddie. I offer my condolences to his widow, Roseanne, and to his children, Tom, Riley and Emma. Curnow died rushing around in his local community from farm to farm trying to warn people of the fire that was approaching and trying to stop people in vehicles and turn them around. That was the mark of the man. He was a leader in his community, much loved, the life of parties and, of course, he will be sorely missed. He was, needless to say, a volunteer Bush Fire Brigade officer.

The others who lost their lives were three Europeans working on a neighbouring farm: Julia Kohrs-Lichte from Germany, Anna Winther from Norway and Tom Butcher from the UK. They died in their efforts to get away from the fire—in fact, with a horse on board in a float. Tragically, they turned into the face of the fire rather than away from it. They also lost their lives, and I offer my condolences.

In addition to the area of land burnt, some 75,000 hectares of cropland was destroyed. I flew over the fire myself last Friday. Perversely, it was probably one of the best cropping years in the Esperance region for many years, so there would be significant losses not only from the fires but from the effect of wind afterwards.

Let me give you some understanding of the fire front itself and the speed with which it was moving. Other fires around Perth on the weekend were moving at 1,500 metres an hour—1.5 kilometres an hour. The Esperance fires at one stage were estimated to be moving at 23 kilometres an hour, so you can understand the devastation.

Lack of capacity for mobile phone communications, unfortunately, was a very significant factor. It is perverse and tragic, because in that area of Esperance the largest single number of towers to cover black spots has in fact been approved, but they are obviously not yet in position. Of course, in September of this year, a communications satellite was launched, and when commissioned it will provide voice-over activity for telephone communications. So that is an area that we know we have to deal with. It is so tragic. As one lady from the Scaddan area said to me on Friday, 'I haven't spoken to my husband or my sons for the last four days. They're out fighting the fires. I don't know where they are and they can't communicate with us.'

In the more remote areas of Australia that community of people have the equal right as those of us in the urban and outer urban areas to good mobile communications, not just in the event of emergencies but, of course, for their normal business and their normal social life and their normal activity. I can assure that community that, with the member for O'Connor, Mr Rick Wilson, and others, we will certainly be addressing those issues. Some 4½ thousand livestock were killed in the fires, so the loss to that community of people and assets will be many years in the recovery phase.

I want to speak of the value of the volunteer brigade members, and I also want to speak to the communication with the Department of Fire and Emergency Services personnel in Esperance. I had the opportunity on Friday to attend the meeting convened by the incident controller. With my hat from the CEO of the Bush Fires Board days, I want to impress on everybody as we go into this fire season that the respect for and the communication between volunteers and paid personnel must be of the highest level. As Len Foster from the Country Fire Authority said to me when I first started as CEO of the Bush Fires Board, 'Chris, never mistake volunteerism for amateurism. Volunteers, properly trained and resourced, are the equal when it comes to their work on fire grounds.' Of course, as we saw in the Esperance fires, we needed the local expertise and the commitment of those many brigade members who, knowing one of their own close friends had died, continued fighting those fires.

I want to record again my appreciation for the management of the Department of Fire and Emergency Services for the mature way in which all services dealt with what was an horrific but ongoing situation. I was there on Friday, but on Saturday and Sunday, with the easterly and the northerly winds, we continued to see those problems emerging. It is critical that we have that level of respect for and the ability to recognise the different roles played by the different personnel.

Access to crown land was another issue. There were questions as to whether personnel were able to go into crown land reserves after the lightning strike had started the fires. I spoke with Minister Hunt yesterday and got his confirmation that there is never a circumstance in which volunteer brigade members could not go into crown land owned by the Commonwealth to suppress, fight and mitigate major fires if life and property are at risk. I have not spoken in the last few days to the state Minister for Environment, but I recall the days in which I administered the Bush Fires Act in Western Australia, and I say again in this place: there should never be an instance in which a well-meaning, properly trained and qualified volunteer cannot go into land owned by others—be it military, be it Commonwealth, be it state—to suppress bushfires that place other properties at risk. I give the undertaking that, whilst I am here in this place, I will never allow a circumstance where such a person can be the subject of successful litigation.

I want to speak briefly about the community response which I observed in a public community meeting in Esperance on Friday. We all know we have a scenario where we go from shock to grief to anger. That was being expressed, and so it should be, but at the same time my plea would be that we always allow every agency the opportunity to speak and to be heard, that we allow everybody in the community to be heard and that we learn the lessons that come from them. Of those involved in the particular incident, apart from the paid officers and the volunteer fire officers, I want to record the excellence of the work undertaken by groups like the State Emergency Service, the Red Cross, counselling services, Horizon Power, which has responsibility for the provision of power in that region, and Telstra. The work undertaken by all of those groups under horrific conditions must be recognised and applauded.

Esperance is a relatively remote area of Western Australia. It is an area that is self-sufficient. It is an area that has always relied upon itself. That community is going to need to dig very, very deep over the next months and years. Already, throughout Western Australia, farmers are donating grain, feed and seed stock for next year. My final words are directed towards the Chief Bushfire Control Officer, Mr Tom Brown, and his wife, Victoria, who, for her sins, was elected the shire president of Esperance only in the last four weeks. The work undertaken by those two people for their wider community has been professional, sympathetic, courteous and at all times has had the wellbeing of their community in mind. I congratulate them and I express my condolence. (Time expired)