Virtual fires test regional COVID-19 safe response

WHEN bushfires sweep the region more than 50 emergency personnel are usually based out of an incident control centre to manage the multi-agency response.

But coronavirus this year poses another threat to emergency services, who have trialled ways to reduce the number of people need onsite at a command centre.

Forest Fire Management Victoria (FFMVic) and the Country Fire Authority co-ordinated a mock response to virtual fires around the region on Thursday to test processes and procedures used in a real bushfire emergency.

Other agencies including Victoria Police, local councils and Ambulance Victoria were also involved.

FFMVic project leader Michael Harper said the aim of the exercise was to test how technology could be used in incident management to allow controllers to maintain physical distancing.

“We are using technology to link people up through video conferencing systems and information portals,” Mr Harper said.

“If it was a severe fire danger day we would have around 15-20 people in the control centre at the start and as the incident escalated there could be in excess of 50 people.”

CFA southwest regional commander Peter Creak said the increased use of technology would mean more specialists from across Victoria could participate in responses without having to move across the state.

Mr Creak said multiple back up systems were in place to ensure physically-distanced incident controllers could still communicate if one technology platform failed.

As the training continues, participants will gain experience in evacuation planning, using warning systems and arranging traffic management through an exercise management system. Aviation systems will also be tested, as participants organise aircraft to gather intelligence, deliver resources and suppress fires.