REPORT INTO BINARY INDUSTRIES FIRE RELEASED

Emergency Services Minister Pat Purcell today tabled in State Parliament an independent report into the Queensland Fire and Rescue Service’s (QFRS) response to the Binary Chemicals fire at the Narangba Industrial Estate in August last year.

Mr Purcell said the fire was an example of excellent fire fighting skills under enormously difficult and dangerous conditions.

“The response involved 22 appliances and 74 Queensland Fire & Rescue Service personnel,” he said.

“There was exceptional cooperation between the QFRS, Queensland Police Service, Queensland Ambulance Service, Emergency Management Queensland, the Environmental Protection Agency, Energex, Origin Energy and the Caboolture City Council to extinguish the fire, ensure the safety of staff responding to the emergency and the community, and to minimise the environmental impact.

“During the course of the response the Scientific Unit of the QFRS monitored air quality, with testing revealing only very low levels of airborne contaminants.”

Mr Purcell said one firefighter was taken to hospital on the night for treatment for smoke inhalation.

“Other than that employee there have been no absences from work as a result of injuries from the fire,” he said.

Mr Purcell said that a letter of complaint was received from a firefighter who was concerned about his exposure to chemicals at the fire.

“The QFRS commenced an internal investigation into the allegations,” he said.

“The internal investigator provided a draft report that was reviewed and it was determined that:

• the original terms of reference were too narrow;
• the draft report raised wider issues involving technical and operational complexity and the internal investigator did not have operational experience that qualified him to comment on those issues;
• Organisational policy required the appointment of an external investigator to investigate such a large scale and complex event; and
• The draft report did not use accepted investigation methodologies for such a complex event.

“The draft report was not completed and the recommendations were not accepted.”

Mr Purcell said that in accordance with QFRS policy, an independent investigator, in this case a company called Verifact Commercial Investigation, was commissioned in March 2006 to conduct an investigation with wider terms of reference.

“The person who undertook the investigation for Verifact is a retired inspector of police who is an experienced investigator with an operational service history, an ideal background to investigate this type of incident. Verifact finalised its report in June of this year,” he said.

“The Verifact report contains the following conclusion “The evidence will show that the welfare and safety of all personnel, the community and the protection of the environment were paramount considerations addressed by management and affirmative actions continued throughout the incident”.

“I understand that more recently the same firefighter made a formal complaint to Workplace Health and Safety Queensland.

“My Department received advice on 26 October 2006 that Workplace Health and Safety Queensland will not be instituting proceedings arising out of its investigation of the matter.”

Mr Purcell said the QFRS accepts that elements of incident management could be improved.

“In an uncontrolled emergency environment involving a large number of firefighters that is not surprising,” he said.

“Of the 19 accepted recommendations in the Verifact report 10 recommendations have been implemented, with implementation of the remainder underway.

Mr Purcell tabled a number of documents, including:

1. A chronology of events;
2. The January 2006 uncompleted internal report;
3. Terms of reference for the Verifact investigation;
4. The Verifact report; and
5. Implementation progress of the recommendations from the Verifact report.

Media contact: Tim Shipstone 07 3247 8194, 0409 620 571