Australia joins European network to mitigate against fires

A European based research project is linking several major organisations, including the Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, on bushfire research and response.

The GEO-SAFE project has created a network to enable Europe and Australia to exchange knowledge, ideas and experience in dealing with bushfires.

The project began in 2016 and brings Australia together with 17 partners and six European countries.

In Australia, the CRC will conduct joint research and promote academic and educational exchanges of information with RMIT University.

“These sorts of linkages help to broaden the research available to the CRC’s partners as well as position the CRC as a leading research body internationally,” said CRC CEO Dr Richard Thornton.

The CRC will provide connections for European researchers visiting Australia.

Researchers from the Pau Costa Foundation in Spain recently travelled to the areas affected by the 2015 Wye River Fire to learn about the best practices and tools used by first responders. 

The project is coordinated by the Fire Safety Engineering Group (FSEG) at the University of Greenwich and partly funded by the European Union.

The objectives of the project include creating a database of human responses to bushfires, developing a large-scale evacuation model and embedding the model into simulation training exercises.

The project will conclude in 2020.

More information on the project can be found here.