Floods and fires, volunteers and resilience

There is plenty of Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC science in the latest edition of Fire Australia. Issue two for 2017 covers flood research that is informing policy and education, an unusual weather phenomenon that is leading to bushfires spreading rapidly, what Australia can learn from Indonesia about disaster resilience, and helping volunteer leadership.

With Cyclone Debbie causing floods that tragically ended in loss of life in April this year, where, why and how Australians are dying in floodwaters is investigated by a CRC team from Risk Frontiers. The study is one of the first to explore the trends and characteristics associated with flood fatalities in such detail. It considered the sociodemographics, circumstances, capacities, knowledge and motivations of those who died in floods. Spatial and temporal trends within the data and the relationship between the fatalities and known characteristics of the hazard were also analysed. The NSW State Emergency Service has drawn on the CRC research to back their latest flood safety campaign. Featuring videos of real-life stories—with people recounting their experiences of trying to drive through floodwater, what happened to them and the consequences of their actions—the campaign emphasises that no-one should ever drive through floodwaters.

One of the most challenging situations in fire management is when relatively non-threatening weather conditions are expected, but a severe fire eventuates. These situations can result in significant loss of property or even life. A weather phenomenon known as a mountain wave could be the cause, with CRC scientists at the Bureau of Meteorology identifing three cases where mountain waves have contributed to severe fire behaviour. Find out more.

CRC PhD student Steve Sutton is investigating what Australia can learn from Indonesia about disaster resilience. Steve's research looks at a remote island and their experience with tsunami, to find out why there was so little loss of life after the 2004 tsunami, despite the island being close other devestated areas. The local people have a universal and effective risk-reduction plan, even though this seems too good to be true in the more modern world.

Our volunteer emergency services sometimes lose volunteers, and CRC researchers are the University of Wollongong are investigating why. The team has developed a leadership training package, which has been delivered with the NSW State Emergency Service, the NSW Rural Fire Service, Victoria State Emergency Service and Queensland Fire and Emergency Services. Find out more.

Fire Australia is a joint publication of the Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, AFAC and the Fire Protection Association Australia. Find this and previous editions of Fire Australia at www.bnhcrc.com.au/news/fire-australia.