ALEXANDRA FIRE BRIGADES GROUP
GROUP  OFFICER REPORT FOR THE
QUARTERLY MEETING    11-11-2008 

During late October 2006 I attended an  Incident Management Briefing for DSE & CFA at Benalla.
There was much pessimism from senior fire people from the north east of the State as to the 
coming season. We all know what happened  some six weeks later when the lightning started fires 
everywhere,  from this part of Victoria and throughout the north east and Gippsland.

Some of us attended a similar briefing about two weeks ago, again at Benalla. Although the mood 
and atmosphere was not quite as bad as two years ago there was considerable concern and  a 
general feeling that the situation was nearly as potentially serious as then.After the meeting,
Deputy Chief Officer Greg Esnouf approached me  and said   "Hope your Group is geared up. The 
Melbourne water catchment and much of the Murrindindi Shire has been identified by the research 
people as being particularly vulnerable this year".

My reply:  "Thanks DCO,   that`s  all we need.   I think I might head  overseas again".

So are the research people right? Time will tell and we can only  prepare for the worst and hope 
for the best.

A number of experienced captains have also said to me, in recent weeks,  that  they are  not 
liking the way the season is developing.   

In January this year we enjoyed great rain which pretty well put an end to any significant risk 
for the last FDP. Perhaps we will be lucky again!.

With the expectation of a difficult fire season the Group have been very active over the past 
few months and have been trying to get as prepared as we can. We still have some more to do 
over the next few weeks. 

I honestly urge all brigades to consider where you are in your preparations, equipment checking, 
rostering & availability planning,  fire prevention works,  fire access track inspections , 
preplanning, contact list preparations, hazard  identification  and, of course, liaison and 
contact with your local landholders and community,  etc. Time is now  limited.

In the next few weeks I propose to hold an exercise at the Group Headquarters to fine tune its
use as a Level 2 ICC and  to test its layout and support systems. This will involve quite a 
number of  local IMT personnel .

During the last month or so there has been no significant incidents across the Group but there 
has been  considerable activity including :

-	Forest hoselaying course Buxton
-	Group Exercise preparation and conduct
-	IMT Exercise at Yea
-	Incident Management briefing- Benalla
-	Aircraft availability briefing- Benalla
-	Completion of Group Support changeover
-	MFPC meeting
-	Update of Wildfire Plan - Murrindindi Shire
-	Revision of Staging Information booklet
-	Radio tests from Yarck/ Rennie`s Hill
-	MEMPC meeting
-	Inspection strategic fire  access track
-	Mapbook  checking process
-	Strike Team Leaders/ Sector Commanders  revision
-	New Light pumper evaluation
-	Group financial audit
-	'A' Class foam training course
-	Ops. Officer Peter Brereton send-off function
-	Various brigade meetings 

I thank those that have been involved with these activitiesand , in particular,  those that 
helped run the Group exercise which seemed pretty successful for the 90 members participating.
A special thank you to Lynne, our Group Secretary, who has been of enormous help lately with 
administration.  

The coming months are most likely going to provide many of us with challenges from the fire 
point of view. We have done well over the years, I`m sure we will again.

As former Chief Officer Harry Rothsay used  to say;
"My door is always open". Mine usually is too, if you can find me.! But, as usual I welcome 
your input.

Merry Christmas to all. It`s only about 6 weeks away.

Peter    Rice
GROUP   OFFICER
11/11/08  

MEETING OF ALEXANDRA FIRE BRIGADES GROUP ON 23/10/06

Special Operations Briefing for all Brigade / Group elected Officers.

Present

Group-GO Rice,J.Kilpatrick,G.Fergus,Alan Layton. M.Edwards,C.Clayton

Koriella-D. Carney,E. Seaton,Pat Mc Veigh, P. Elward, C. Lees,

Alex Urban- C Chester, R. Chester, D. Reade, S.Delaney, B. Luckman, T. Dean,

Alex Rural-G. Creighton, N. Parkinson

Buxton-M. Leslie, B. Sorrell,S. Larner, M. Somers,J. Cole,

Acheron-D and D Durant, D. Gamble,J.Collard, G.Dick,D.Wakefield,G & C de Klign,

Eildon-B.Dare, L.Timmins,J. Cujic.B.Lowry,R.Till,E.Kellalea,

Thornton-P.Constantino,P.Dundas

Yarck-T.Jones,D.Martin,J. Drysdale,D.Hoden,R. Ridd,M.Shaw,

Taggerty-D.Robinson,I.Dwyer,D.Glass,D.Fitzpatrick,D.Birtchnell,M.Dunn

Whanregarwen-R.Murray,B.Pyke,D.Roberts,W.KylstraNarbethong-R.Mackie

DSE-J.Hopper, D. Bowdern

Hancocks-B.Eggleston

APOLOGIES: John Rogers, Peter Brereton, Phil Cox, Bill Maddex, Alex Caughey, Graham Robb, Bob Johnson, Marysville Brigade, Lyn Luckman

Plus any others on attendance sheet

Introducing RO12 Peter Creak

Hancocks- Boyd Eggleston

DSE John Hopper

GO Peter Rice Report on current situation

Media has started to discuss high risk this year

Worst season on current trends

Rainfall this year 275mm(11") average rainfall 708mm(28")

Every year weve had bad rain, we've had large fires

Lightning a huge risk

It's going to be a long fire season this year(TFB's in October!!)

RO Peter Creak

Mapping of community assets-have back by 30^th November

Secretaries course on 23^rd October well represented

DGO Layton Weather and drought presentation

Eildon weir rainfall

Cumulative rainfall for Marysville- down 10 metres over 10 years

Victorian Rainfall

Drought Index

Water storage critically low over most of state

Storages did not increase over winter

El Nino will be declared soon

80-100% chance of hotter than average maximum temps

60 to 65% chance of hotter than average minimum temps

RO Peter Creak

Summer Season Outlook

Highest risk season

Brigades are more prepared than previously- more training

We have to accept that there are fires we cannot fight

Planning for joint IMT-DSE and CFA

Regional water strategies-identify key issues

More funding required for longer season-aircraft readiness

Community preparedness

Community meetings

Community fireguard program

Media and public relations

CFA members should provide consistent and accurate advice—wildfire brochure

Escalation plans Principal

5 truck trigger-2 command vehicles,establish control point,etc

10 truck trigger -DMOs , Additional water portable repeater, etc

15 truck trigger-request for aircraft etc

Strike team Arrangements-4 phases

Initial response rapid as possible

Local neighbouring group strike teams

Away strike teams

Long duration strike team

Incident management

Priority needs to be for effective fireground control 3 phases

local /initial(naming control point-make name that can be used if fire escalates (broad area name, preferably e.g Thornton Control instead of Taylor`s Hill Control)

Mutual Support/combined responses between groups

Region/Area support

Consider potential in initial response phase

Water Management

CFA bid to government for extra funding-water carrying contractors(drinking water issues)Floating collar tanks-some already at Heathcote and Seymour

GV Water winter storage-helicopters can use these

Brigade planning essential-cannot guarantee replenishment of dams

Forest Fire danger

Long term rainfall deficiencies

Seasonal drought conditions

Severe Fire behaviour potential even on calm days

Fatigue Management

Need to be aware of workloads both within & outside of CFA activities

Take opportunities to rest

Look after each other

GO Peter Rice

Unusual behaviour of fires-high flame height/ Huge radiant heat - lately

Not as much grass to burn , however can still have serious grass fires with

little fuel, especially on blow-up type days, e.g. Alexandra area 8^th January, 1969

Low humidity

Windrows reigniting after months

Be extra careful going into scrub/forest fires this fire danger period- Reminder

Linton situation. This year could be much worse than than anything previous.

John Hopper-DSE

Entering the worst potential season

DSE are 6-8 weeks ahead of normal year

Training has been completed-summer casual staff already employed

Fire towers up

Have used FLIR to identify hot spots from old regeneration burns

48% of shire is public land (DSE)

It's critical that fire fighters know the tracks when they go into bush-imperative that they take DSE accredited fire fighter with them

It's expected that most fires will be on DSE land this summer

IMT's will work closely-CFA and DSE

Most water points half dry

Hancocks Plantations -Boyd Eggleston

Crews hired earlier this year

One third of plantations have been felled this year-these areas will behave as grassland

Brigade Reports on water storages.

Alexandra Rural-most dams 50% or less now

Acheron-Connelly's creek still running, small dams low

Buxton-Rivers down to summer levels, dams down

Eildon-Dam at 18%-most dams 50%, Taylor Bay of some concern-problems accessing water

Koriella-Spring Creek gone, dams @ 50%

Narbethong-Fishers Creek down to summer levels

Taggerty-Little Rivers & Stevensons still running, dams low

Thornton-Rubicon down but flowing, dams low

Whanregarwen-Goulburn River-access difficulty, dams low

Yarck-Most dams 50% or lower, Home Creek low but still running, Shire discussing bore.

Landowners want some reassurance of replenishment of dams. In the event of urgent fire job CFA has right to demand water-Can't guarantee replenishment but will try.

We may have to look at digging out creek beds to make filling holes available

Issues discussed in open forum

Economy of water -Very important this season

Blacking out-getting off truck and raking, putting water on edge of fire, not inside area.

All crew leaders to ensure firefighting water is not wasted on fireground. Crews to do blacking out from OFF tanker using DSE type methods.

Minimum skills firefighters do not always have training to rakehoe & use different strategies

CFA is at the heart of country communities-use drought to bring communities together.

Discussion regarding fire refuges- Assembly areas.

Fire ready meetings planned around the Group area. These important this year.

Strike Team Rosters

Don't take vehicles from single tanker brigades-sometimes not possible

Tankers sitting doing nothing between night and day shifts-have to be checked by DMOs

Let comms officers or captains know if unavailable

Let Group know in radio sched on TFBs if key personnel, crew or equipment not available

Eildon requested Eildon Support be kept free for use with staging trailer-not always possible

Could we look at getting Brigades with more minimum skills trained firefighters to have more turns on roster- good idea

Rotate use of tankers even if not crewed from tanker's brigade.

Change of shift at fires-Try to make sure change of shift occurs in daylight hours, suggested 0530 and 1730 hours. (CFA-DSE policy statewide is 0700 and 1900 hrs. Crews on fire ground after approx. 1730 hours most likely will have to stay all night on the first night.)

Incumbent incident controller to work out what is needed ASAP- this feedback is required for changeovers to run smoothly.Also necessary for welfare arrangements and the lead times.

Have to be careful not to send all of our key personnel in first wave .Brigade leaders to over see. Must keep personnel for subsequent shifts e.g. Crew Leaders, ST Leaders, drivers, experience mix, etc. Please monitor this closely for ALL callouts.

Hazelwood Open Cut Fire

Reason that CFA was used on fire is because the fire was in a regional area and the CFA is responsible for fires on these assets with the Industry Brigades

DGO Fergus reported on the Hazelwood fire .

Courses

Non fire fighting personnel must have ticket now to deliver fuel/food/water etc to fireground-Safety at the fireground-another course will be run on 8^th November-7 pm

Sector commander training course 1^st, 2^nd, 3^rd December-we're after nominations

Welfare at incidents

We can control welfare within this Group, but do not have control over other group areas.

Group has put a lot of work into preplanning welfare

Suggestion that ration packs be replaced at changeover of crews

Plant Supervision

Not done well by CFA, Graders and dozers left to their own devices. We need to allocate tasks, feeding, time shifts-need to supply communications with them in the form of portable radio or slip on vehicles following them around .Please, at all levels, ensure plant is being supervised, properly tasked and provided with welfare. Do not let control lines to be put in

unless there is a proper need. Consider rehabilitation requirements also.

Consider allowing the fire to burn down to a suitable area or containment line .

Murrindindi IMT

Preplanning on this. Not always easy due to staffing.

Combined Yea and Alex team for Level 2 incidents.

Group Exercise-All Brigades in the Group.

Sunday 29^th October in Whanregarwen area 0900 hrs to1200 hrs

Lunch / Debrief at 1200 hrs . Return to home Station approx. 1245 hrs.

(Remember daylight savings starting on Saturday night-put clocks forward.)

Information on exercise handed to brigades.

For this season Weather broadcasts and radio scheds as per previous years

CFA petition-please send back at prescribed time

Meeting closed at 2247.

 

NOTE: CONFIRMATION OF MINUTES, FINANCIAL REPORTS, ETC OF AUGUST 2006

GROUP MEETING WILL OCCUR AT THE NEXT FORMAL MEETING OF THE GROUP.

 

"BRILLIANT" FIRE

Lightning moving across the district on the morning of 28th December, 2005

and started a number of fires in the Alexandra district.

The area to be most affected was near Yarck.

Initially, the Yarck brigade attended a scrub fire near Free`s Road in almost

inaccessible terrain. Supported by Terip and Ruffy brigades work commenced to

control this blaze with work going on throughout the morning.

Early afternoon and a report from Wombat Fire Tower. More smoke rising, back towards

Kanumbra and developing.  Vicfire alerted to activate predetermined response.

Captain Tom Jones of Yarck RFB left the now contained first fire along with the Yarck Tanker.

Soon, he realised the second fire was on his own property, "Brilliant" and was

building rapidly. Make tankers 10 was his initial sitrep when he got close enough

to size-up the situation. A few minutes later a request for more tankers.

The Alexandra Group put in  place its preplanned strategy including establishing a

Type 2 IMT,  fireground command and communications plans and arranged aerial support,

along with bulldozers and welfare for the firefighters.

Eventually, after a couple of hours, the blaze, in steep terrain was contained.

Around 200 hectares of heavy pasture, almost fully cured was burnt. Some minor damage to fencing.

The operation continued for the next few days with every effort being made to

make this safe before the forecast weather conditions worsened.

Apart from tankers working tirelessly, FLIR (Forward Looking Infra Red) detection

equipment located in a helicopter was used to try to identify hot spots.

Bulldozers continued to consolidate control lines.

On Saturday, 31st December, 2005 a day of Total Fire Ban, extreme weather conditions

developed.

Despite tanker patrols a portion of the previous fire broke away from an unidentified

hot spot. This occurred around 3-30 pm with weather conditions of 43 degrees,

9% Relative Humidity and wind gusts being measured as Northerly 45 Kph at the fire.

The equipment already on the fireground could not stop the rapidly escalating fire.

Around the same time another outbreak (100 hectares) occurred at Hutchinson`s Road,

Bonnie Doon, only about 20 kilometres to the east. This fire drained resources and

stretched equipment and firefighter availability considerably.

Especially, as the Alexandra Group had been requested to provide three tankers,

a command vehicle and Strike Team Leaders to the Avenel area, earlier that day.

Within an hour or so 150 firefighters from CFA and DSE were battling the blaze.

Twenty two CFA tankers, ( some from as far away as Shepparton & The Dandenong Ranges),

 four DSE tankers and their FAD (dozer). Two large private dozers, one excavator,

a large water tanker and sundry other equipment were deployed.

Police prepared to close the Maroondah Highway and warned residents in the path of the

fire, down wind. Murrindindindi Shire activated its Emergency Management Plan with the MERO

assisting with resources.

Community Radio UGFM and the ABC were broadcasting regular updates for concerned citizens.

An Incident Management Team of 10 worked feverishly at the Alexandra Joint

Emergency Services Facility providing resources, planning, arranging logistical support,

sitreps, mapping, media liaison, emergency services liaison,  etc.

A comprehensive command structure and communications plan was put in place on the fireground.

Red Cross, supported by local emergency catering groups, went into action providing meals and

refreshments for the troops on the ground. The Alexandra Secondary College

Student Canteen became the focal point for the first batches of meals.

Local businesses assisted by providing materials for the catering effort.

Thousands of bottles of chilled drinking water were sent to the thirsty firefighters

along with a refrigerated van and scores of bags of ice.

Late that afternoon the many firefighters and tankers supported by continuous

drops from the Helitacks, along with the bulldozers, began to have an effect.

Not however, before houses were threatened on the property for a period.

Despite appalling weather conditions and a fire that had now developed to 550 hectares in

size  containment of the outbreak was achieved, to the relief of many in the path of the

blaze.

Many were that busy that night they did not even realise that one year had finished and a new one

commenced.

Work continued for days with the outbreak becoming "controlled".

Ten days later regular patrols and FLIR scans are continuing.

Losses, considering, the size and potential, were reasonably minor and are still being assessed.

The operation put to rest many plans to celebrate the new year.

All involved did a great job under very trying conditions.

It was the biggest grass fire in the district for atleast 12 years and had enormous potential

to develop to catastrophic size.

 

Pictures taken after the "Brilliant" fire and are supplied courtesy of Alexandra Newspapers

 if any of those who helped fight this fire have photos would

you let the Group know-most people were too busy to get pictures!