General News
29 October, 2020
Noorat’s bushfire place of last resort determined
CORANGAMITE Shire Council has designated the Noorat Recreation Reserve on MacKinnons Bridge Road as the local Bushfire Places of Last Resort (BPLR).
CORANGAMITE Shire Council has designated the Noorat Recreation Reserve on MacKinnons Bridge Road as the local Bushfire Places of Last Resort (BPLR).
Corangamite Shire acting director of sustainable development Aaron Moyne presented the advice of designation to council at the September council meeting.
Community members from Noorat had asked council to designate a BPLR following the South West bushfires of March 2018.
BPLRs are not community fire refuges or relief centres, but places of last resort during the passage of a fire and are places of relative safety only.
Mr Moyne said consultation occurred with the CFA who approved the site, along with council’s municipal fire and emergency management committees.
“The designation of these two sites is a further management measure that may assist in protecting the community and saving lives in the event of any future extreme or catastrophic fire event,” he said.
Outgoing Noorat-based councillor Helen Durant said there was a lot of concern and confusion during the St. Patrick’s Day Fires from many people in Noorat regarding where they should go during a direct fire threat.
“Particularly given the fire started after dark, and took many people by surprise,” she said.
“The choice of the Noorat Recreation Reserve as a BPLR is one that most people would naturally see as the best option for the town.”
“It will provide some comfort to the community, but it is so important for people to realise that this area is designed to be a last resort only and can only offer relative safety.
“Continuing education on the need for household fire plans and leaving early needs to be reinforced so these places of last resort remain just that and not the default position when a fire threatens.”
Councillor Jo Beard said it was good to know locals of Noorat will feel a little bit more at ease knowing that they have got a designated place of last resort.
“We must reiterate that it’s not going to ensure there will be survival, but at least it gives them somewhere they know they can go as a place of last resort,” she said.
The appropriateness of a site for BPLR is determined via identification of a potential location for CFA assessment, dependent upon meeting the requirements of consent and right of access, accessibility of entry and exit for the general public, maintenance of the site in accordance with CFA criteria, defensible space, appropriate signage, internal and external consultation with the CFA, Victoria Police and the Municipal Emergency Management Planning Committee, and a consideration of financial and resource implications.
The Noorat Recreation Reserve Trustees have provided consent to use the reserve, and have committed to the ongoing vegetation management. Once approved, council will commit to the installation of appropriate signage and the ongoing monitoring of the site.
The Country Fire Authority Act 1958 and Emergency Management Act 1986 require councils to identity, designate, establish and maintain suitable places as BPLs within the municipality.
In May 2019, council requested CFA to assess potential BPLR locations in Camperdown, Terang, Cobden and Noorat.
Council has yet to find a compliant location in Terang but has requested the assessment of further localities, which are not expected to be completed by the CFA prior to the 2020/2021 fire season.