Council Inquiry into Northern Rivers, Hawkesbury Disaster Blames Meteorological Department, NSW SES, Resilience NSW

However, he added that issues such as the centralization of SES and the lack of volunteers are severely impacting the agency’s ability to respond to flood emergencies.

The report made 37 recommendations, including the need to restructure SES to tap into local knowledge, coordinate with other rescue agencies, raise salaries for paid staff and encourage more volunteers. gone.

It was also suggested that Resilience NSW should be phased out unless its role is clarified and its policy focused on meeting community needs. Indigenous peoples also need to participate in discussions on how to better prepare communities for floods and recovery.

The government and telecommunications companies failed to secure emergency communications to flood-hit communities after infrastructure was destroyed, reports said.

The report also said the government was unable to deliver services such as housing and cash relief in time, and the state’s infrastructure was ill-equipped to handle the extent of the flooding.

Survey participants claimed that the timeliness, accuracy and clarity of the information issued by the NSW SES and BOM were inadequate, and that communication problems were exacerbated by the loss of communication services, particularly in the Northern Rivers region. the report points out.

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A spokesperson for NSW SES said it welcomes the opportunities presented by the independent flood research and parliamentary inquiry to identify ways to improve the emergency response of NSW SES volunteers and staff.

“NSW SES notes that the NSW Government will consider the findings and recommendations of the Parliamentary Inquiry and will respond to Parliament in a timely manner,” said a spokesperson.

We are reaching out to BOM for comment.

NSW Minister for Emergency Services and Resilience Steph Cooke said the government will review its findings and recommendations and respond in due time.

Many are awaiting the findings of the government’s independent flood survey report. The report was provided last month to NSW Premier Dominique Perrotett, who plans to prepare a response before the findings are made public, but one of his key recommendations is: increase. Resilience NSW boss Shane Fitzsimmons has been fired and the agency has scaled back.

report, Created by former Police Commissioner Mick Fuller and Professor Mary O’Kanecalls for government agencies to be reduced to smaller offices and responsibilities reallocated to existing government departments. Based on the recommendation, a new Deputy Director General will also be appointed in charge of emergency and disaster management.

The former emergency services chief said poor planning and lack of time for the disaster agency to establish itself well before taking action ruined the agency from the start.

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