By next summer roughly half of the Yallingup Rural area will be part of a new gazetted fire district, according to the Ministerial Response to the Margaret River Fire Enquiry. (see here.) By 2015, the whole area will be part of a new district. Under this new regime, the brigade will no longer have direct responsibility for primary response.
The ministerial statement, released February 23 states: “These gazettals mean that FESA (either through a career Fire and Rescue Service station or a volunteer Fire and Rescue Service Brigade) becomes the hazard management authority within the boundaries of the gazetted district and will have direct responsibility for primary response. Additional fire and rescue capability will result, but additional responsibilities will fall to residents in terms of increases in the Emergency Service Levy for these areas. These increases will commence in the financial year following the implementation date of the relevant fire district……….
“These expanded fire districts will require the allocation of additional fire and emergency resources and the possible construction of additional career fire stations, but all changes will be done in close collaboration with volunteer brigades and local government. The
additional FESA presence complements and does not replace existing volunteer fire units.”
Yallingup Rural Volunteer Bush Fire Brigade 