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A Defence helicopter crew took 45 minutes to alert the ACT Emergency Services Agency to the location of a fire it accidentally sparked in late January, which went on to burn through 80 per cent of Namadgi National Park. Defence has defended its response, saying its priority at the time was to return its crew to safety after its helicopter was damaged. It said details about the location of what would become known as the Orroral Valley fire were passed on as soon as the crew made an emergency landing at Canberra Airport. It hasn’t explained exactly why the emergency situation meant it couldn’t alert ACT authorities earlier. But the Emergency Services Agency said it was satisfied that Defence followed its safety protocols in reporting the incident and that “information flow” was appropriate between the two authorities. A Defence MRH-90 Taipan helicopter was on a reconnaissance mission in Namadgi National Park when its landing light sparked a fire at about 1.30pm on January 27. The fire ignited within 3 to 5 seconds of the helicopter’s landing, with dry conditions helping to fan its rapid spread, according to an internal Defence report pubblished under freedom of information. The fire was photographed by crew members during takeoff, the report said. However, it wasn’t until the helicopter had landed at Canberra Airport about 2.15pm – some 45 minutes after the fire was sparked – that it passed on location data to the ACT Emergency Services Agency, the report said. The Emergency Services Agency said the fire was reported from the Mt Tennent tower at 1.49pm, prompting units to be dispatched immediately. Aerial firefighting crews were “tasked” three minutes later. According to an ABC report, fire crews were incorrectly dispatched to Booroomba Rocks, Bulls Head and Honeysuckle Valley in search of the blaze. The report said it wasn’t until 48 minutes after the fire’s ignition that ACT crews were able to confirm the exact location of the smoke. By 2.24pm, rural fire service crews reportedly advised that they would not approach the blaze because of its spread, saying “I don’t think there’s much we can do … at this current point”. The Emergency Services Agency did not respond directly when asked if it believed Defence’s delay in passing on location data might have contributed to the fire’s spread. “The nature of the event, weather, topography, and dry environmental conditions meant spread of the Orroral Valley Fire was driven by various environmental factors that made suppressing the fire extremely challenging,” it said in a statement. “The community should be reassured that the ACT Emergency Services Agency did all that they could to reduce the spread of the Orroral Valley Fire as quickly as possible. “Our crews worked extremely hard to ensure no lives or homes were lost.” READ MORE: Defence did not confirm details of the incident report – including the 45-minute delay in the passing on location data – when contacted by The Canberra Times. In a statement, a Defence spokeswoman said that the helicopter was damaged and in an “emergency situation” when the fire ignited. “The aircrew’s priority was to return the aircrew and aircraft to safety,” the spokeswoman said. “The aircrew passed the location of the fire to ACT Emergency Services Agency immediately after effecting an emergency landing at Canberra Airport.”
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A Defence helicopter crew took 45 minutes to alert the ACT Emergency Services Agency to the location of a fire it accidentally sparked in late January, which went on to burn through 80 per cent of Namadgi National Park.
Defence has defended its response, saying its priority at the time was to return its crew to safety after its helicopter was damaged.
It said details about the location of what would become known as the Orroral Valley fire were passed on as soon as the crew made an emergency landing at Canberra Airport.
It hasn’t explained exactly why the emergency situation meant it couldn’t alert ACT authorities earlier.
But the Emergency Services Agency said it was satisfied that Defence followed its safety protocols in reporting the incident and that “information flow” was appropriate between the two authorities.
The Orroral Valley fire burnt through more than 80 per cent of Namadgi National Park.
Picture: Jamila Toderas
The fire ignited within 3 to 5 seconds of the helicopter’s landing, with dry conditions helping to fan its rapid spread, according to an internal Defence report pubblished under freedom of information.
The fire was photographed by crew members during takeoff, the report said.
However, it wasn’t until the helicopter had landed at Canberra Airport about 2.15pm – some 45 minutes after the fire was sparked – that it passed on location data to the ACT Emergency Services Agency, the report said.
The Emergency Services Agency said the fire was reported from the Mt Tennent tower at 1.49pm, prompting units to be dispatched immediately. Aerial firefighting crews were “tasked” three minutes later.
According to an ABC report, fire crews were incorrectly dispatched to Booroomba Rocks, Bulls Head and Honeysuckle Valley in search of the blaze. The report said it wasn’t until 48 minutes after the fire’s ignition that ACT crews were able to confirm the exact location of the smoke.
By 2.24pm, rural fire service crews reportedly advised that they would not approach the blaze because of its spread, saying “I don’t think there’s much we can do … at this current point”.
The Emergency Services Agency did not respond directly when asked if it believed Defence’s delay in passing on location data might have contributed to the fire’s spread.
“The nature of the event, weather, topography, and dry environmental conditions meant spread of the Orroral Valley Fire was driven by various environmental factors that made suppressing the fire extremely challenging,” it said in a statement.
“The community should be reassured that the ACT Emergency Services Agency did all that they could to reduce the spread of the Orroral Valley Fire as quickly as possible.
“Our crews worked extremely hard to ensure no lives or homes were lost.”
Defence did not confirm details of the incident report – including the 45-minute delay in the passing on location data – when contacted by The Canberra Times.
In a statement, a Defence spokeswoman said that the helicopter was damaged and in an “emergency situation” when the fire ignited.
“The aircrew’s priority was to return the aircrew and aircraft to safety,” the spokeswoman said.
“The aircrew passed the location of the fire to ACT Emergency Services Agency immediately after effecting an emergency landing at Canberra Airport.”
