Our Role

The role of the SES in bushfires is to support the Volunteer Bush Fire Brigade. The Armadale Unit supports the Roleystone, Serpentine and Gosnells Volunteer Bush Fire Brigades.

BUT it is the job of the Volunteer Fire Brigades to tackle the bushfires.

However, it would be prudent to know the results of bushfires and how their damage can be minimised or even prevented.

Australian Bushfires

Every summer, Australia has a large number of bushfires usually caused by lightning or humans. Most are not disasters, however, if not quickly detected and extinguished, even a small fire can get out of control and possibly cause a disaster. In drier seasons the danger is much higher, and all too quickly bushfires can become large, spreading to threaten human life, homes and other buildings, crops, livestock, forests and wildlife.

Bushfire Survival and Property Protection

There are many factors which affect the risk to life and property. These include property location and access, the amount and type of nearby vegetation, building position and condition, availability of water and the physical capabilities of those involved. In bushfires, radiant heat, dehydration and asphyxiation (choking) are the major killers. Well-prepared houses resist the normally-brief exposure to bushfire flames, protecting those inside who may then be able to save their homes.

Preparation before the bushfire season

• If possible, make a firebreak around your home (use mower, spade, rake), trim branches well clear of house.
• Clear roof gutters of leaves, twigs etc.
• Store wood, fuel, paints etc. well clear of the house.
• Remove rubbish, leaf litter and native shrubs close to house. Keep grass short and green.
• Fit wire screens to doors, windows and vents. Enclose gaps, roof eaves and under house.
• Keep a ladder handy for roof access (inside and outside) and hoses to reach all parts of house and garden.
• If water is not connected, obtain a high pressure pump.
• Decide on a household plan to either leave early or stay to protect your properly-prepared home during a bushfire. Check you have bushfire insurance.

If a bushfire approaches

If you prepare your house as noted above, and unless you decide to leave early or have been ordered by authorities to do so, stay in the house after taking these extra precautions:

• Phone the bushfire brigade - do not assume they know about the fire.
• Fill baths, sinks, buckets etc. with reserve water and turn off gas and power.
• Remove curtains and move furniture away from windows.
• Wear long woolen or heavy cotton clothes and solid boots or shoes, a hat or woolen balaclava and gloves.
• Plug downpipes with rags and fill all roof gutters with water. Hose down walls, garden, etc. on the sides of the house facing the 'fire-front' and watch for spot-fires.
• Inside, close all windows, doors and block crevices and gaps. When the fire-front arrives, stay inside, away from windows, while it passes (usually 5 to 15 minutes).
• Quickly extinguish any fires which may have started in, on, or under the house and check inside the roof cavity as well.
• If the house is alight and can't be extinguished, move away to safe burnt ground. Don't leave the area, wait for help. Listen to the battery radio for official information.

If caught in a bushfire while driving

• Stay in the vehicle. Don't drive in or near bushfires.
• If caught in one, don't drive through flames or smoke.
• Stop at a clearing or by the roadside in a low vegetation area.
• Switch off the ignition, and turn on hazard lights and headlights.
• Stay inside unless near safe shelter.
• Keep vents, windows and doors closed.
• Lie down below window-level, under a woolen blanket until the fire-front passes.

Research shows that in a bushfire, a car petrol tank is unlikely to explode in the period needed to stay inside the vehicle using it as a shield against deadly radiant heat of the fire-front.

If caught in a bushfire on foot

• Don't panic - cover all exposed skin. Move across-slope, away from the fire-front, then down-slope towards the rear of the main fire. Find open, or already burnt ground.
• Do not try to out-run the fire or run uphill or go through even low flames unless you can clearly see a safe area close-by.
• If you can't avoid the fire, protect yourself from heat radiation by lying face down under an embankment, rock, loose earth, or in a hollow, or if possible get into a pond, dam or stream - but not into a water tank.

Vital Points to Remember

If you are in a house or car you will be safer than in the open while the fire-front passes. Stay there, unless advised to leave by emergency authorities. If caught in the open you must protect yourself from the radiant heat of flames by every possible means.

Note: A heavy, pure wool blanket (to wrap around you) and a flask of water (to drink and to moisten a corner of the blanket as a smoke mask) are basic requirements for bushfire survival and will give protection against radiant heat, dehydration and asphyxiation even in intense fires.