Northern Australia seasonal bushfire outlook 2013
Fire Note 113: Large areas of northern Australia face the prospect of an above normal bushfire season this year, due to generally below average rainfall in the months leading up to the main fire season.
This is the major conclusion of the Bushfire CRC Northern Australia Seasonal Bushfire Outlook for the Northern Territory, northern Queensland and Western Australia.
Cardiovascular risk screening of volunteer firefighters
Background: The work demands involved in firefighting place significant stress on the cardiovascular system. This study investigated the application of the AHA/ACSM Health/Fitness Facility Preparticipation Screening Questionnaire in volunteer Country Fire Brigade (CFA) firefighters. Methods: Cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors were measured in 3777 CFA firefighters and entered into a modified version of the American Heart Association (AHA)/ACSM Health/Fitness Facility Preparticipation Screening Questionnaire to stratify individuals as low, moderate or high risk.
The hydrogeomorphic sensitivity of forested water catchments to wildfire
Wildfires are a strong driver of change in many landscapes (e.g. south-eastern Australia, western USA, Canada, and the Mediterranean). Vegetation removal and changes to soil properties by wildfire result in altered surface hydrology and erosion rates. When wildfire occurs in a water catchment these changes can cause negative impacts on water quality, supply, and treatment. Therefore, being able to predict the potential response of a landscape to wildfire is important in informing resource management decisions.
Aurora: Enhancing the capabilities of Landgate’s FireWatch with fire-spread simulation
Predicting probable fire spread is vital to the success of fire suppression and protection of lives and property. Fire authorities responsible for deploying resources gain a valuable advantage if they know in advance where the fire is likely to be by the time resources arrive. Researchers at the University of Western Australia (UWA) have developed software, called Australis, to simulate bushfire spread over the various fuel types found within Australia.
‘Wait and See’: The Elephant in the Community Bushfire Safety Room?
Australian community bushfire safety policy identifies two safe courses of action for householders under bushfire threat: leave well in advance of possible fire impact, or stay and defend a suitably-prepared property. Findings from a survey of residents of at-risk communities in south-eastern Australia were that under (hypothetical) bushfire threat on a day of Extreme Fire Danger 30% intended to wait and see how a fire developed before committing to a bushfire survival action.
Visions of sharing responsibility for disaster resilience: sharing control
Strong normative statements have been made in key policy documents and public inquiries about the need to focus on a principle of ‘Shared Responsibility’ in Australian emergency management. However, these statements give very little guidance on what sharing responsibility might look like on the ground, leaving stakeholders wondering what this idea mean for the way they interact and what they are expected to achieve in this sector.
The Stress of Firefighting: Implications for Long-term Health Outcomes
Fire and rescue staff routinely endure significant psychological and environmental stress exposure on the job. While much has been done to improve understanding of the physiological effects of exposure to these conditions, little has been done to quantify the inflammatory stress response that firefighters are exposed to during wildfire suppression. Therefore the aim of the present study was to explore whether firefighters experienced a change in inflammatory markers following one day, and across two days of wildfire suppression tasks.
Assessing the validity of tympanic temperature to predict core temperature of firefighters in different environmental conditions
The present study examined the validity of tympanic temperature measurements as a predictor of core temperature on the fireground in different environmental conditions. Fifty-one volunteer firefighters participated in the study across four different conditions, the conditions consisted of; 1) passive (i.e., no intervention) cooling in cold ambient temperatures (0-6°C); 2) cooling (through water immersion) in cool ambient temperatures (10-12ºC); 3) cooling (through water immersion) in warm ambient temperatures (21.5°C); and, 4) passive cooling in warm ambient temperatures (22°C).
