Bushfire Disaster Coming !

Raging bushfires in northern New South Wales and Queensland envisage what is to come if the drought persists and this big dry continues.  This is the earliest start of the fire season on record and it is ominous that discontent in the ranks is causing some of the volunteer firefighters who give their time saving lives and homes to refuse to answer the call out.

Those volunteer fire fighters are an Australian legend.  Countless fire catastrophes over the years have seen homes destroyed and lives lost but without the help of the volunteers the fires could not have been finally checked.   It is men and women from all walks of life who train to get the skills needed and give of their time when an emergency happens.   That is not without personal danger. A sudden wind change or falling trees can result in loss of life or severe injury.

The government contributes equipment to the Rural Fire Service but those volunteers are unpaid and this contrasts with city fire brigades where the crews that turnout are permanent paid employees.  This does create problems where city fire crews and the Rural Fire Service find themselves both working a fire on the outskirts of a city.

This sometimes sees a clash between what some see as " professional " and " amateur " fire fighting methods.  That resulted in newspaper headlines when a tragic fire at Tathra swept through the community because the two services had difficulty working together.

It has been clear for some time that there is a toxic relationship existing within the higher ranks of the Rural Fire Service.   We are hearing whispers of bullying, harassment and  intimidation in the agency and  ineffective processes in place to address it.  Members tell of repeated and constant acts of bullying, intimidation, sexual misconduct, verbal and physical abuse and exclusion.

That has now reached the stage that some volunteer fire fighters are walking away from giving service.   This toxicity is destroying the camaraderie that was such an integral part of rural fire service membership.  That could be disastrous when we are probably facing the most damaging fire season we have ever encountered because of a mix of global warming and a prolonged drought.  A hotter Australia will produce more lightning strikes and this could be a summer that breaks records.

If upper management has become autocratic and unbearable the government would be wise to listen to the rank and file and take the necessary action.   There simply is no other response possible to the fire danger we face.  It is the RFS which has the equipment and the skills to tame bushfires and it is reliant on the huge workforce of volunteers who spring into action when there is an emergency.

Those incredible people who willingly walk away from jobs and family and put their lives on the line as an unpaid civil service deserve better than abuse from the hierarchy.   Time is now short for the government to get this problem sorted - and fixed  !