Bunkers back

By Russell Bennett and Mara Pattison-Sowden
BEEFED up fire bunkers and new road networks are some of the plans being considered for the Yarra Valley in a push to improve bushfire safety.
Fire Services Commissioner Craig Lapsley wants to reinstate fire refuges because he is worried residents would put themselves in danger by relying too heavily on Neighbourhood Safer Places (NSP).
And Mr Lapsley said new roads may be built and existing roads upgraded to make it easier for people to get out of places like Warburton in an emergency.
Fire refuges have been a demand from Yarra Ranges residents since the 2009 bushfires, and the issue reared its head again last August when hundreds gathered for community bushfire meetings in Yarra Glen and Warburton.
Mr Lapsley said the fire bunker plans come because he fears the open area NSPs are too exposed in a bushfire and will be used as a first option rather than a last resort in a crisis.
“In the main, NSPs are an open space.
“It doesn’t matter what clearing you do, there are a lot of safer places to be than out in the open,” he told the Mail last week.
“I think the community is considering NSPs as primary locations and the first option to flee to during a fire.
“But they’re really a last resort,” he said.
Mr Lapsley’s department is having design and building regulations drawn up so new private and public refuges can be built to a standard. This marks a new direction for the fire authorities and State Government, which had previously been wary of fire refuges because there was no set standard for new or existing buildings.
“Refuges will now be of a new design, most likely concrete structures, to better withstand intense fires,” Mr Lapsley said.
“They’ll offer far greater protection than NSPs.
“Anything that offers structural protection is far better than just open space.”
Mr Lapsley said the Yarra Valley was a prime candidate for community refuges “given how difficult it is to establish NSPs and the one road in, one road out issues in some areas”.
“We’re certainly willing to talk about road design over the long term,” he said.
“That may mean modifying existing roads, or possibly even creating new routes.
Mr Lapsley said new fire refuge building codes were due in July.
“Other states are watching,” he said.
“It’s critical we don’t rush this.”
“We’re working hard on more options for people so they don’t feel like they have to rely on NSPs.
“They may be community fire refuges or even private bunkers.”
He said fire authorities were currently working through who would fund, own, and manage the structures.
“But both local and state government would be key players,” he said.
The implementation of refuges, or bunkers, was brought up again by residents at the Warburton meeting last August, with some saying they wouldn’t want to travel too far and that Warburton and Warburton East would each require one.
One resident suggested they would become complacent if they had a refuge.
“We’d have to do trials. We’d be our own worst enemy.
“Knowing what happened in Upwey, it sounded like bedlam,” he said, remembering when people had tried to leave and the roads became blocked.
Another resident said a refuge should not be a “Taj Mahal”, “it needs to be only for people who get caught”.
“You should still try and leave early.”