Wilmington After-Action Review

The SA Country Fire Service (CFS) acknowledges the opportunities for improvement and accepts the report's findings. We thank Mark Williams of Incident Management Solutions for his insights and work in delivering a well-considered review of operations. 

It is worth reflecting that work is already underway against all 11 recommendations, with multiple projects and actions in progress. While 5 recommendations require additional resources to achieve a full resolution of the identified issues, we can celebrate that we are learning from these incidents and actively working to make meaningful improvements. 

The Emergency Management Merge (EM Merge) program and the New Operational System (NOS) will help address many of the key findings from the report once fully implemented. These initiatives are essential for improving operations and boosting overall efficiency. 

While the EM Merge program is currently funded internally, which has meant a more gradual rollout, CFS is focused on delivering this important work. We remain committed to keeping everyone informed about which parts of EM Merge will be in place ahead of the 2025/26 Fire Danger Season and the timeline for full implementation. 

CFS acknowledges the importance of enhancing our systems to support operational information sharing and rostering better. The NOS project is already underway, focusing on replacing the functionality of the Critical Resource Incident Information Management System Online Network (CRIIMSON). Additionally, CFS is exploring options for rostering volunteers, IMT members, and staff, and the need for improvements in these areas is acknowledged. The NOS is partially funded to replace CRIIMSON functionality, integration, and enhancement of resource management software, which has been committed to but is not yet fully costed or funded. Work is progressing at pace on these matters. 

CFS will also consider the yet-to-be-finalised After-Action Review of the Lower South East complex fires before making decisions on resourcing the recommendations. This approach ensures that all learnings from the 2024/25 Fire Danger Season are thoroughly evaluated and integrated into the planning and implementation processes. 

Fatigue management continues to be an important focus across all areas of the service, highlighting the need for a consistent and practical approach. Strengthening the systems we use to monitor and support fatigue management will help improve the current framework. 

Integrating standard briefing templates into our workflow will also strengthen operational planning. These templates should be included in all relevant training courses, pre-season exercises, and operational development programs to support a safer and more effective approach. 

The review highlights the need to improve strike team management, which was a primary driver for the EM Merge program. Implementing a firefighting response system like BART (or a similar one) along with standard templates for deployments is essential for improving the volunteer experience and ensuring efficient resource utilisation across responders. 

CFS recognises the critical role of Farm Fire Units (FFUs) in supporting our volunteers and ensuring efficient firefighting efforts. While CFS is undertaking a review of the guidelines and ongoing promotional activities, additional resources are required to fully achieve the system's requirements recommended by this and other reviews. Specific tools, such as an app that allows tracking of FFU resources, developed in accordance with government requirements, make them difficult to implement through internal resourcing. 

Operational communications are also identified as needing improvement, and the CFS communication plan is actively being considered as part of a sector review to integrate better communication across the Metropolitan Fire Service (MFS) and State Emergency Service (SES). Enhancements in logistics procedures and preparedness are essential to improving the volunteer experience, and these improvements need to be implemented through policy, training, and systems. 

CFS would like to acknowledge the stress that these fires caused the Wilmington community and thank them for their cooperation in the firefight and for contributing to this review. CFS would also like to acknowledge Senior Firefighter Michael Wigg, who sustained serious injuries during the incident. We are all grateful for his continued recovery and for the bravery and courage shown during this incident. In addition, CFS would like to thank all first responders, Incident Management Team (IMT) members, interagency partners, and Farm Fire Units for their efforts in containing the Wilmington fire.