AFAC Knowledge Web News

Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC Update

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 16:34:50 +1000

New AFAC Website Is Coming Soon!

Thu, 28 Feb 2013 12:29:59 +1100

Bushfire and Natural Hazards Cooperative Research Centre

Thu, 14 Feb 2013 10:04:59 +1100

The Australasian Fire and Emergency Service Authorities Council (AFAC) - the industry peak body for Fire and Emergency Service agencies across Australasia - strongly supports the Federal Government announcement regarding the establishment of a new Bushfire and Natural Hazards Cooperative Research Centre from 1 July 2013.

Department of Fire & Emergency Services, WA

Thu, 01 Nov 2012 16:32:30 +1100

The Department of Fire & Emergency Services (DFES), WA, formerly Fire and Emergency Services Authority (FESA) was established today, November 1, 2012.

Appointment: Director-General, Emergency Management Australia

Mon, 29 Oct 2012 11:34:08 +1100

Congratulations to Mark Crosweller, Commissioner of the Emergency Services Agency (ESA), who has been appointed as the new Director-General, Emergency Management Australia, Commonwealth Attorney-General�s Department (effective date to be determined).

A New Chief Executive Officer for AFAC

Mon, 08 Oct 2012 14:13:35 +1100

The new Chief Executive Officer of the Australasian Fire & Emergency Service Authorities Council (AFAC) has been named.

AFAC National Database � Incident Activity Reporting, Australian Fire and Rescue Services

Mon, 17 Sep 2012 09:36:34 +1000

In September 2011, the AFAC office assumed responsibility for the management of the AFAC National Database and has been building capability to provide data management, analysis and statistical reporting on industry trends, and emerging issues.

Outcomes of the Temporary Flood Barrier Forum, 27-28 June 2012

Fri, 27 Jul 2012 16:30:37 +1000

On 27-28 June 2012, senior practitioners from around Australia met to discuss the use of temporary flood barrier in flooding events.

111 Text Service for the Deaf and Hearing Impaired

Tue, 15 May 2012 10:44:19 +1000

By Quinlan Webster, Senior Station Officer, New Zealand Fire Service

AIIMS Doctrine: What's the next step in the evolution of Incident Management?

Tue, 15 May 2012 10:28:55 +1000

By Geoff Conway, Executive Officer, AFAC AIIMS Steering Committee

Routine Computer Maintenance on all AFAC websites

Fri, 24 Feb 2012 09:58:51 +1100

The corporate, knowledgeweb and afac2012 websites will not be available from 7PM to Midnight on Friday 24-FEB-12 due to routine computer maintenance.

AFAC's Public Safety Mobile Broadband Position Now Available

Wed, 15 Feb 2012 14:50:08 +1100

AFAC Public Safety Mobile Broadband Position.

New Public Information Officer Tabard Required by AIIMS 2011 Revision Now Available

Fri, 23 Dec 2011 11:33:19 +1100

Purchase the set of 5 tabards for AIIMS.

MEDIA RELEASE: Dr�ger sign for another Three Years

Wed, 21 Dec 2011 09:46:53 +1100

Get the print version of this MEDIA RELEASE.

Flames and Firebrands at research Advisory Forums

Tue, 13 Dec 2011 11:13:31 +1100

Around 60 Bushfire CRC researchers, students, AFAC staff and end-users gathered at University House at the Australian National University for the fifth meeting of the Research Advisory Forum at the end of last month.

Finalisation of the Review of the Fire Qualifications

Tue, 13 Dec 2011 11:08:25 +1100

The Fire qualifications have been submitted to Government Skills Australia (GSA) on 21 October in preparation for endorsement. While there will still be opportunity for further national comment in the forthcoming weeks, the review of the Fire Qualifications by AFAC and the UFUA has been completed.

AIIMS Training Resources Kit

Tue, 13 Dec 2011 11:01:27 +1100

The review of the Australasian Inter-service Incident Management System^TM (AIIMS) Revised Edition 2011 has been completed, with the latest edition released by AFAC in October 2011.

MEDIA RELEASE: Wild Weather Teaching Resource Wins National Award

Mon, 12 Dec 2011 11:18:44 +1100

Get the print version of this MEDIA RELEASE.

Review of the 2010�11 Victoria Flood Warnings & Response: Final report

Thu, 08 Dec 2011 11:30:23 +1100

Get the print version of this FINAL REPORT .

MEDIA RELEASE: Prescribed Burning an Essential Tool in Managing Community Safety

Fri, 25 Nov 2011 09:51:28 +1100

Get the print version of this MEDIA RELEASE.

A Guide to Resource Sharing (Mutual AId) 2011

Mon, 07 Nov 2011 17:12:25 +1100

Purpose

This guide has been developed to provide advice about matters that may be taken into account when agencies are considering entering into agreements for the sharing of resources intra and inter-jurisdiction.

SES National Awareness Week

Mon, 07 Nov 2011 16:01:00 +1100

State Emergency Services (SES) across Australia will be painting the country orange for National SES Week, 7-13 November, to recognise the thousands of SES volunteers who serve their community in times of storms, floods and other emergencies.

Wild Weather Teaching Resource Wins Award

Mon, 24 Oct 2011 16:57:50 +1100

The Li’L Larikkins Natural Hazards Children’s Program Teacher’s Resource has won the Best Primary Education Video Resource at the ATOM 2011 Awards. The ATOM Awards, established and run by the Australian Teachers of Media (ATOM), recognise excellence in film, television and animation.

Emergency Communications Seminar � how well did it work?

Thu, 13 Oct 2011 09:50:49 +1100

In preparation for their group meeting earlier this year, the AFAC Chief Information Officer’s Group decided to hold an open seminar on emergency communications and how well they worked during recent disasters. Open to AFAC member agencies and other organisations to attend, the Seminar focused on how high volumes of emergency information was received, used and dispatched during the disasters in New Zealand and Australia early in 2011.

Historic Reports Published by the State Library of Victoria

Mon, 12 Sep 2011 16:51:24 +1000

Statement and Updates to VIC Coroner�s Approach to Black Saturday Fatalities

Mon, 12 Sep 2011 16:45:27 +1000

On February 16, 2009 a Royal Commission was appointed to inquire into the causes and circumstances of the Black Saturday bushfires of February 7, 2009 which claimed the lives of 173 people and devastated so many communities.

Doctrine Master Class Series 2011

Mon, 05 Sep 2011 11:50:27 +1000

The early-2011 round of Doctrine Master Classes has now concluded with a total of almost 70 participants from 9 agencies over 3 states.

AFAC would like to thank Mr Justin Kelly (Principal Consultant, Noetic) and Noetic Solutions Ltd for their assistance with sharing knowledge and assisting build capability in this area.

A Shared Responsibility: The Report of the Perth Hills Bushfire February 2011 Review

Thu, 18 Aug 2011 13:57:18 +1000

Understanding Floods: Questions and answers

Wed, 20 Jul 2011 15:47:14 +1000

Understanding Floods: Questions and Answers (UFQA) explains fundamental scientific and engineering concepts regarding floods, in clear and simple language.

Industry Collaborative Purchasing Briefing on 292 Contract

Fri, 01 Jul 2011 11:11:18 +1000

The NSW 292 contract was launched at the Sydney Masonic Centre with representatives of the manufacturing and supply industry for fire and emergency service equipment.

Nominations Now Open for 2011 Knowledge Innovation Award

Thu, 23 Jun 2011 10:20:01 +1000

Nominations are now being received for the AFAC/Motorola Knowledge Innovation Award. This is the second year this award has been offered and comprises two categories:

Queen�s Birthday 2011 Honours Awards

Fri, 17 Jun 2011 12:04:12 +1000

Congratulations to all the agency members who were recognised as 2011 Queens Birthday Honours recipients. It is most pleasing to see that dedicated service and commitment has been acknowledged through these Awards.

Steering Committee on National Broadband Capability for Police and Emergency Services

Tue, 07 Jun 2011 11:26:13 +1000

Attorney-General Robert McClelland has just released the terms of reference for a multi-jurisdictional Steering Committee to develop a plan to equip Australia�s public safety agencies with reliable and robust mobile broadband capability.

AFAC Council Agrees on Consultation for Potential Professionalisation Scheme

Tue, 31 May 2011 13:20:14 +1000

At the AFAC April Council meeting the green light was given to undertake preliminary consultation within its member agencies and key stakeholders on a professionalisation scheme.

Nominations Now Open for 2011 Laurie Lavelle Award

Thu, 19 May 2011 17:13:09 +1000

Nominations are now being received for the annual Laurie Lavelle Award. Get your nomination form here. The objective of the award is to recognise the efforts of an individual who has undertaken a role within an AFAC member agency that has contributed significantly to enhancing the knowledge or skills, operations, performance or public profile in the emergency services sector in Australasia.

Sharing Risk: Financing Australia�s disaster resilience

Wed, 18 May 2011 11:23:49 +1000

Special Report Issue 37 from the Australian Strategic Policy Institute

Submission to the Queensland Floods Commission of Inquiry

Tue, 17 May 2011 14:50:29 +1000

AFAC�s interest in the outcome of this Commission of Inquiry is to optimise future conditions for AFAC members to manage flood emergencies as they arise. To that end, our submissions focus on those areas which have the potential to improve both community safety and flood response operations.

Work Health and Safety: New laws, are you ready?

Tue, 17 May 2011 11:25:17 +1000

With new Model Work Health and Safety laws coming into effect in January, it is time for organisations to ensure they know how these changes will affect them.

Scania Australia Continues Support for AFAC Annual Conference

Mon, 16 May 2011 11:07:12 +1000

Roger McCarthy, Scania Australia Managing Director, today signed on as major sponsor for the AFAC and Bushfire CRC conference 2011. This is the fourth year Scania has supported the event, this year to be held in Sydney at the end of August.

Fire and Emergency Service Volunteers Acknowledged During National Volunteers Week

Wed, 11 May 2011 11:53:04 +1000

AFAC acknowledges and thanks all volunteers of our member agencies around Australasia for their commitment and dedication.

Fundamentals of Doctrine: A best practice guide

Tue, 10 May 2011 09:13:11 +1000

AFAC has released the publication Fundamentals of Doctrine: A Best Practice Guide available from the members area of the AFAC Knowledge Web.

AFAC and Bushfire CRC Launch Annual Conference in Sydney

Thu, 05 May 2011 16:26:19 +1000

MEDIA RELEASE:

AFAC and Bushfire CRC Launch Annual Conference in Sydney

Children's Disaster Awareness Program Delivered to Schools

Thu, 05 May 2011 12:10:36 +1000

Attorney-General Robert McClelland today said every Australian primary school will receive a new education kit to teach children about how to prepare for and respond to natural disasters.

Download a print copy of this press release from the office of Hon. Robert McClelland MP, Attorney-General.

2011 PIFSA Executive Planning Meeting

Mon, 02 May 2011 16:19:59 +1000

Social Networking Media Paper

Thu, 24 Mar 2011 12:44:33 +1100

AFAC recently monitored social networking media channels during the QLD and subsequent VIC floods.

For a period of approximately 2 weeks, varying levels of information distribution occurred though social networking media channels and some emerging issues for AFAC members were raised as a result.

Development of AIIMS 4th Edition

Thu, 10 Mar 2011 10:08:47 +1100

AFAC is conducting the review of the AIIMS 3^rd Edition and the development of the 4^th Edition, working closely with the Australia New Zealand Policing Advisory Agency (ANZPAA), fire and emergency services and other users.

Development of Common Alerting Protocol: Australian Profile (CAP-AP) as an Australian Government Standard

Thu, 10 Mar 2011 09:27:03 +1100

Since FY2009-2010, the Attorney-General�s Department has undertaken the CAP project; To develop an Australian Government standard for the Common Alerting Protocol and have recently announced positive progress made. In their recent brief, AGD have outlined the current aim to finalise the development of CAP-AP requirements in order to move forward to the next key milestone in April to develop the CAP-AP standards document. Matthew Smith (NSWRFS) has been providing AFAC representation on the consultation group of the Common Alerting Protocol and continues to uphold AFAC standards in the process.

Access to Communications Spectrum for Public Safety Agencies

Fri, 11 Feb 2011 09:09:18 +1100

Over the Christmas period AFAC worked with the Australia New Zealand Policing Advisory Agency (ANZPAA) and the Council of Ambulance Authorities (CAA) to have a joint voice in relation to the issue of public safety agencies having dedicated digital dividend spectrum to ensure sufficient broadband data networks exist to support the critical business needs of emergency services.

Australia Day 2011 Honours Awards

Fri, 04 Feb 2011 11:42:34 +1100

Congratulations to all the agency members who were recognised as 2011Australia Day Honours recipients. It is most pleasing to see that dedicated service and commitment has been acknowledged through these awards.

Recent Vote on ISO 16073 Has Been Approved

Fri, 28 Jan 2011 16:31:21 +1100

AFAC Standards Manager, Russell Shephard, is chairman of the International Standards Organisation (ISO) TC/94 SC/14 Working Group Committee 3; Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for Wildland Firefighters.

The committee includes representation from an array of international countries and is the body responsible for developing international PPE standards for wildland firefighters (ISO 16073).

Shephard reports, �The committee has worked the past six years developing the first PPE ISO standards for wildland firefighter use. These standards include head-to-foot protection with a focus on compatibility across all PPE equipment�.

The standard's final draft incorporates input from AFAC's PPE Group, which provided a significant amount of insight as subsequent drafts were developed en route to the final version.

A final ballot for ISO 16073 was released on November 26, 2010 and closed on January 26, 2011.

The ballot has been successful, with the required number of countries supporting ISO 16073.

This is the first international standard that encompasses use of all PPE equipment for wildland firefighters.

What to do BEFORE, DURING and AFTER a flood regarding rooftop solar electricity panels

Wed, 12 Jan 2011 11:58:15 +1100

Be careful with rooftop solar electricity panels. An information guide, produced by Sharp - Australia, about rooftop solar electricity panels has been provided to ensure precautions are taken should any rooftop solar energy systems be impacted by flood. The Clean Energy Council of Australia has been in touch with AFAC to share this information.

NT Fire and Rescue Service Acting Executive Appointments

Tue, 04 Jan 2011 09:51:27 +1100

The following changes affecting NTFRS executive positions will commence from 8 January 2011 as a result of the Director�s resignation.

New Name for NSW Fire Brigades

Tue, 04 Jan 2011 09:42:04 +1100

From 1 January 2011 the NSW Fire Brigades (NSWFB) will change its name to Fire and Rescue NSW.

Knowledge Web Welcomes New Funnelback Search Engine

Fri, 17 Dec 2010 09:02:18 +1100

AFAC is pleased to announce the arrival of a new, significantly more powerful, helpful and easier to use and interpret search engine for our Knowledge Web.

New Chief Officer for South Australia CFS

Thu, 16 Dec 2010 16:07:37 +1100

An announcement has been released confirming that Greg Nettleton has been appointed to the position of Chief Officer of the South Australia Country Fire Service.