In this episode of Risk! Engineers Talk Governance, due diligence engineers Richard Robinson and Gaye Francis discuss due diligence for bushfires.

Richard has been involved in advising on bushfire risk and controls since Ash Wednesday in 1984, while both Richard and Gaye as R2A were involved with bushfire assessments post Black Saturday in 2009.  

Their discussion highlights:

• Bushfire season is getting longer, and the ability to prepare for it is getting shorter. Volunteer firefighters are also declining.
• Bushfire best practice for local planning for protection has adopted a vulnerability approach – criticality rather than likelihood.
• From a due diligence viewpoint, we know we cannot stop bushfires. But, what are all the controls that we can put in place?  
• Often it's not the threat of the bushfire itself, but the interaction of a community or people with the bushfire – the vulnerability of peri-urban areas.
• Building codes have been updated to improve bushfire resistance, but challenges remain around prescribed burning and access of remote areas during fires.
• Prepare your property, but be ready to evacuate early on high-risk days, as access can quickly become blocked.

For further information on Richard and Gaye’s consulting work with R2A, head to https://www.r2a.com.au.