FIRE AND EMERGENCY
SERVICES — LIGHT TANKERS — PROCEDURES
369. Hon MARTIN ALDRIDGE to the Leader of the House
representing the Minister for Emergency Services:
I refer to the Department of Fire
and Emergency Services operational circular 37/2021 issued in April this year
regarding new procedures for opening a light tanker bonnet.
(1) How many
people does DFES recommend are required to safely open the bonnet of a light tanker?
(2) What is the seating capacity of
a light tanker?
(3) To enable
DFES and bushfire volunteers who utilise light tankers to determine whether
this procedure is appropriate for them, can the minister please detail the
specific concerns raised about opening a light tanker bonnet with fewer than
three people?
(4) Noting that
DFES operational circular 01/2021 states that five improvement notices have
been issued regarding light tankers, can the minister identify the other three
issues of concern and why these issues have not been communicated to
volunteers?
(5) Has the
minister undertaken any correspondence with the Minister for Industrial
Relations regarding the Worksafe findings and the precedent this may set for
other automotive workers; and, if so, can the minister please table this
correspondence?
Hon SUE
ELLERY replied:
I thank the honourable member for
some notice of the question.
The Department of Fire and Emergency
Services advises as follows.
(1) Up to three
people, if a risk assessment conducted by a career fire and rescue station
officer determines that there is the potential risk of injury to CFRS
firefighters
(2) The seating capacity of a light
tanker is two.
(3) A potential
risk of musculoskeletal injury to individuals was identified when lifting and
lowering a light tanker bonnet with fewer
than three people. Subsequently, a risk assessment was undertaken by DFES, with
a new procedure developed to assist with
manual-handling tasks. The procedure is not mandatory; however, it
should be applied when a potential risk of injury to any individual is
identified.
(4) The three issues that were reported to DFES
include thermal protection of light tanker critical components, presence
of airbags in some light tankers, and the presence of the rear window in light
tankers. These reported issues were not communicated to DFES staff and
volunteers as the improvement notices were investigated and officially
cancelled by the WorkSafe WA Commissioner in accordance with section 51 of the
Occupational Safety and Health Act 1984.
(5) Not applicable.