Fire Rescue Victoria

Fire Rescue Victoria (FRV) is a fire and rescue service in the state of Victoria in Australia that serves the capital Melbourne and major regional centres throughout Victoria.[2] FRV operates 85 fire stations with full-time staff firefighters, around half of which are in the Melbourne metropolitan area, and the remainder in regional cities and large towns throughout the state.[3] 34 of these stations which are classified as peri-urban and regional stations, are co-located with volunteer brigades of the Country Fire Authority (CFA). [4]

Fire Rescue Victoria

Operational area
Country	Australia
State	Victoria
Agency overview
Established	1 July 2020 (2020-07-01)
Staffing	Career
Commissioner	Ken Block
Facilities and equipment
Stations	85
Website
frv.vic.gov.au

Urban areas to be serviced by Fire Rescue Victoria[1]

FRV was formed on 1 July 2020 by a merger of the Metropolitan Fire Brigade (MFB), a fully career service responsible for much of the Greater Melbourne area, with the 1400 career firefighters of the CFA, some of whom had operated in "integrated" staff and volunteer brigades on the Melbourne urban fringe and in other centres.[5] FRV Deputy Commissioner Ken Brown stated on 1 July 2020 that under the CFA and MFB merge; Fire Rescue Victoria is now made up of more than 3600 operational firefighters.[6]

The changes were strongly supported by the United Firefighters Union, which represented paid firefighters in both services, and strongly opposed by Volunteer Fire Brigades Victoria, a peak body affiliated with most CFA brigades. In the years leading to the formation of FRV, the UFU and VFBV engaged in multiple acrimonious industrial disputes with the CFA, and fire services reform became a major issue in Victorian state politics, with the Labor state government aligned with the UFU, and the Coalition opposition, including the National country representatives, taking the side of VFBV.

History

Victoria has been serviced by the Metropolitan Fire Brigade and Country Fire Authority since the 1950s. Following the Black Saturday bushfires, the 2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission (2009 VBRC) recommended that a Fire Commissioner be appointed to advise on the boundary between the two services, the Metropolitan Fire District.[7] The 2009 VBRC also recommended strengthening the CFA's integrated model, in which paid and volunteer firefighters train, locate and respond together using the same equipment and training.

The origins of the service created significant political controversy.[8] The genesis for the proposal to split paid and volunteer firefighters, creating two separate services where the integrated turnout model would no long apply, was to resolve an industrial dispute arising from Enterprise Bargaining Agreement negotiations between the CFA (and separately the MFB) and the UFU.[9] These negotiations, which started in 2014 and were still causing problems for the government in 2017, raised objections by VFBV, volunteers, the leaders of the fire services themselves and the Minister for Emergency Services at the time, Jane Garrett MP, who resigned rather than support a deal she said was "unworkable". The key objections related to concerns that the EBA would significantly disadvantage CFA volunteers and the ability of the CFA Chief Officer to manage them, and the powers of the Chief Officer. Statements by the CEOs and Chief Officers of the CFA and MFB, Emergency Management Victoria, VFBV and others at the Select Committee into the Bill canvassed serious concerns about the impact of the EBA and said that splitting the fire services to resolve an industrial dispute would compromise public safety.

In October 2016 the Australian Federal government passed amendments to the Fair Work Act 2009. These amendments were to prevent any enterprise bargaining agreement terms that "[affect] the ability of an organisation to engage, deploy, support, equip or manage its volunteers". The Government of Victoria stated that creating an enterprise agreement while maintaining a combined career and volunteer firefighting service would be very difficult without such terms.

Subsequently, on 19 May 2017, Premier Daniel Andrews and Minister for Emergency Services James Merlino announced changes to the Victorian Fire Services. Neither the Chief Officers, CEOs or Boards of the CFA or MFB were consulted on the development, and neither was the Emergency Management Commissioner. It was publicly released only a day after the fire services themselves were informed and no material changes were made to the proposal before it was passed by Parliament despite significant concerns raised by those parties in public, in the Select Committee and the Parliamentary "Inquiry into Fire Season Readiness".

Fire District Review Panel

Following the creation of Fire Rescue Victoria, the Victorian Government will establish the Fire District Review Panel.[10] The panel will regularly review the Metropolitan Fire District and advise the Minister for Emergency Services on any changes to be made. The Minister will have the final decision to change the district boundaries.[11] Currently, the Metropolitan Fire District is established by the Metropolitan Fire Brigades Act 1958. Any change to the district boundaries must either be by amendment to the act or by request of a municipal council. The district boundaries have not changed since the 1950s, although the capability to do this has existed in the CFA legislation, as has the ability to increase resources where needed using a scaling system to increase resources to support volunteers in urban centres. This scaling up has been removed under the reform and the only model allowed in future is either a fully volunteer or a fully career fire station, with no more integrated training and response which was endorsed (and recommended be strengthened) in the VBRC.[12]

Emergency Services Infrastructure Authority

The Emergency Services Infrastructure Authority (ESIA) was established in 2016. ESIA oversees planning, project management, procurement, construction of new fire stations and upgrades to existing stations. It will oversee a $44m station building program for the CFA.

The establishment of ESIA was subject to consultation with FRV, the CFA, the Victoria State Emergency Service, Life Saving Victoria and unions and other representative bodies.[13]

Transitioning CFA stations

See also: List of Country Fire Authority brigades

Part of the change is to transition 38 CFA stations to Fire Rescue Victoria.[14] Many of these stations currently house both career and volunteer firefighters. The career firefighters will become part of Fire Rescue Victoria. The Government and CFA will work with volunteers to identify the best solution for volunteers at each brigade.[15]

Brigades transitioning from Country Fire Authority to Fire Rescue Victoria[1][16]

Region	Brigades
North East	Shepparton, Wangaratta, Wodonga
South East	Morwell, Traralgon, Latrobe West
North West	Bendigo, Mildura
South West	Portland, Warrnambool
West	Ballarat City, Lucas
North East Metropolitan Area	Boronia, Rowville, South Warrandyte
South East Metropolitan Area	Cranbourne, Dandenong, Frankston, Hallam, Mornington, Pakenham, Patterson River, Rosebud, Springvale
North West Metropolitan Area	Caroline Springs, Craigieburn, Eltham City, Greenvale, Melton, Point Cook, South Morang, Sunbury, Tarneit
South West Metropolitan Area	Belmont, Corio, Geelong City, Lara, Ocean Grove

List of FRV fire stations and appliances

The FRV Fire District encompasses over 1000 square kilometers of the previous Metropolitan Fire District (MFD) in Metropolitan Melbourne, and includes the response areas of 38 previous CFA Brigades
The FRV fire stations are listed below along with the appliances located at each station under the control of the FRV (CFA Co-located appliances not included in this list)

Previous MFB and CFA logos have been removed from the appliances and the new FRV logo and markings are being added.

Station Number	Station Name	Appliance/Callsigns
1	Eastern Hill	Pumper 1A (P1A), Pumper 1B (P1B), Ultra-Large Pumper 1 (UP1), Ladder Platform 1 (LP1), Control Unit 1 (CU1), District Car 1A (DC1A), District Car 1B (DC1B), Rehabilitation Unit 1(Rehab1)
2	West Melbourne	Pumper 2A (P2A), Pumper 2B (P2B)
3	Carlton	Pumper 3 (P3), Rescue 3 (R3)
4	Brunswick	Pumper 4 (P4)
5	Broadmeadows	Pumper 5 (P5), Pumper Tanker 5 (PT5)
6	Pascoe Vale	Pumper Tanker 6 (PT6)
7	Thomastown	Pumper Tanker 7 (PT7),Pumper 7 (P7) Teleboom 7 (TB7), Rescue 7 (R7), District Car 7 (DC7)
8	Burnley Complex
9	Somerton	Pumper Tanker 9 (PT9), Pumper 9 (P9)
10	Richmond	Pumper 10 (P10), Teleboom 10 (TB10), Transporter 10A (T10A), Transporter 10B (T10B), pods: Breathing Apparatus Support (BA), Bulk Decontamination (BD), Fire Duty Support (FDS), General Purpose (GP), High Angle Rescue (HAR), Hose Layer (HL), Heavy Rescue Support (HRS), Urban Search And Rescue (USAR-1), Tripper Rescue Support (TRS)
11	Epping	Pumper Tanker 11 (PT11)
12	Preston	Pumper 12 (P12)
13	Northcote	Pumper 13 (P13)
14	Bundoora	Pumper 14A (P14A), Pumper 14B (P14B)
15	Heidelberg	Pumper 15 (P15)
16	Greensborough	Pumper Tanker 16 (PT16)
17	Woodstock or Donnybrook (Future Planning - site not yet confirmed)
18	Hawthorn	Pumper 18 (P18)
19	North Balwyn	Pumper Tanker 19 (PT19)
20	Box Hill	Pumper 20 (P20)
21	Not in use
22	Ringwood	Pumper Tanker 22 (PT22), Teleboom 22 (TB22)
23	Burwood	Pumper 23 (P23), pods: Water Recycling Module 5 (WRM-5)
24	Glen Iris	Pumper 24 (P24)
25	Oakleigh	Pumper 25 (P25), Teleboom 25 (TB25), Ladder Platform 25 (LP25), Rescue 25 (R25), District Car 25 (DC25)
26	Croydon	Pumper 26 (P26), Pumper Tanker 26 (PT26)
27	Nunawading	Pumper Tanker 27 (PT27), Rescue 27 (R27)
28	Vermont South	Pumper Tanker 28 (PT28)
29	Clayton	Pumper Tanker 29 (PT29)
30	Templestowe	Pumper 30 (P30), Pumper Tanker 30 (PT30)
31	Glen Waverley	Pumper 31 (P31) Pumper Tanker 31 (PT31)
32	Ormond	Pumper 32 (P32)
33	Mentone	Pumper Tanker 33 (PT33)
34	Highett	Pumper Tanker 34 (PT34), Pumper Tanker 34 (PT34)
35	Windsor	Pumper 35A (P35A), Pumper 35B (P35B), Ladder Platform 35 (LP35)
36	Not in use
37	Not in Use
38	South Melbourne	Pumper 38A (P38A), Pumper 38B (P38B), Breathing Apparatus 38 (BA38), Breathing Apparatus Support 38 (BS38), HAZMAT 38 (HZ38)
39	Port Melbourne	Pumper 39A (P39A), Pumper 39B (P39B)
40	Laverton	Pumper Tanker 40 (PT40)
41	St Albans	Pumper Tanker 41 (PT41)
42	Newport	Pumper Tanker 42 (PT42), Ultra-Large Pumper 42 (UP42)
43	Deer Park	Pumper 43 (P43), Pumper Tanker 43 (PT43)
44	Sunshine	Pumper Tanker 44 (PT44), Teleboom 44 (TB44), Rescue 44 (R44), District Car 44A (DC44A), District Car 44B (DC44B), pods: Equipment and Resource management (ERM), Water Recycling Module 3 (WRM-3)
45	Spotswood	Pumper 45 (P45)
46	Altona	Pumper Tanker 46 (PT46)
47	Footscray	Pumper 47 (P47), Ladder Platform 47 (LP47), Transporter 47 (T47), pods: Fire Duty Support (FDS), Hose Layer (HL), Mechanical Loader (ML)
48	Taylors Lakes	Pumper Tanker 48 (PT48)
49	Laverton North	Pumper Tanker 49 (PT49)
50	Ascot Vale	Pumper 50 (P50)
51	Keilor East	Pumper 51A (P51A), Pumper 51B (P51B)
52	Tullamarine	Pumper Tanker 52 (PT52)
53	Sunbury	Pumper 53 (P53)
54	Greenvale	Pumper 54 (P54)
55	Caroline Springs	Pumper 55 (P55)
56	Melton	Pumper 56 (P56), Rescue 56 (R56)
57	Tarneit	Pumper 57 (P57)
58	Point Cook	Pumper 58 (P58)
59	Not in use
60	VEMTC
61	Lara	Pumper 61 (P61), HAZMAT 61 (HZ61)
62	Corio	Pumper 62A (P62A), Pumper 62B (P62B), Breathing Apparatus 62 (BA62)
63	Geelong City	Pumper 63A (P63A), Pumper 63B (P63B), Ladder Platform 63 (LP63), Rescue 63 (R63)
64	Belmont	Pumper 64 (P64)
65	Armstrong Creek (Future Planning)
66	Ocean Grove	Pumper 66 (P66)
67	Ballarat City	Pumper 67A (P67A), Pumper 67B (P67B), Ladder Platform 67 (LP67), Breathing Apparatus 67 (BA67)
68	Lucas	Pumper 68 (P68), HAZMAT 68 (HZ68)
69	Not in use
70	Warnambool	Pumper 70 (P70), Aerial Pumper 70 (AP70), Transporter 70 (T70)
71	Portland	Pumper 71 (P71)
72	Mildura	Pumper 72 (P72), Aerial Pumper 72 (AP72), Tech Ops 72 (TO72)
73	Bendigo	Pumper 73A (P73A), Pumper 73B (P73B), Ladder Platform 73 (LP73), Breathing Apparatus (BA73), Technical Rescue (TR73)
74	Wangaratta	Pumper 74 (P74), Transporter 74 (T74)
75	Shepparton	Pumper 75 (P75), Aerial Pumper 75 (AP75), HAZMAT 75 (HZ75)
76	Wodonga	Pumper 76 (P76)
77	Traralgon	Pumper 77 (P77), Ladder Platform 77 (LP77)
78	Morwell	Pumper 78 (P78), Aerial Pumper 78 (AP78)
79	Latrobe West	Pumper 79 (P79)
80	Craigieburn	Pumper 80 (P80)
81	South Morang	Pumper 81 (P81)
82	Eltham City	Pumper 82 (P82)
83	Not in Use (Used for Motorola radio network)
84	South Warrandyte	Pumper 84 (P84)
85	Boronia	Pumper 85 (P85)
86	Rowville	Pumper 86 (P86)
87	Dandenong	Pumper 87A (P87A), Pumper 87B (P87B), Ladder Platform 87 (LP87), Rescue 87 (R87)
88	Hallam	Pumper 88 (P88), HAZMAT 88 (HZ88)
89	Springvale	Pumper 89 (P89)
90	Patterson River	Pumper 90 (P90)
91	Frankston	Pumper 91A (P91A), Pumper 91B (P91B), Breathing Apparatus 91 (BA91)
92	Cranbourne	Pumper 92 (P92)
93	Pakenham	Pumper 93 (P93)
94	Mornington	Pumper 94 (P94)
95	Rosebud	Pumper 95 (P95)
96	Not in use
97	Clyde North (Future Planning)
FB	South Wharf	FB1, FB2, FB4, FB6

South Wharf station appears to no longer have a station number assigned, station number 70 has been reassigned to Warnambool.

No tankers have been allocated to FRV and their fleet will only compose of 2wd appliances. Any incidents requiring 4wd tankers will be paged to the nearest CFA brigades for support.

History of Legislation

The legislation was presented to the Victorian Upper house just before Easter 2018, and led to a record sitting to allow it to pass, including controversy over pairing of a cross bench member[17] and accusations the Government was using the absence of a sick MP, an independent who was the casting vote on the legislation, to push through a vote in her absence by extending the sitting into Good Friday, which had never happened before. The legislation was defeated on the third reading on Easter Sunday.[18] The bill was a "Disputed Bill" [19] and could be considered after the next election by a committee known as the Dispute Resolution Committee in line with the Constitutional (Parliamentary Reform) Act 2003.[20] The bill was reintroduced on 29 May 2019 and passed through both houses on 20 June 2019.[21]

Progress

The latest MFB EBA has been passed by Fair Work Australia,[22] and is anticipated to be the template for the new FRV EBA.[23] The EBA continues to contain the provisions that concerned its opponents and continues to concern them given FRV staff will transfer their industrial arrangements when seconded to CFA, raising concerns that those provisions will still impact the volunteers. While not mentioned in the 2019/2020 Victorian State Budget,[24] a rise in the Fire Services Levy[25] of 10% is widely anticipated in response to a rise in paid staff numbers, despite a previous government promise the levy would be frozen for two years after implementation. This levy is paid by all landholders and businesses in Victoria, with the country areas not being served by FRV being levied at a higher rate.[26] The State Budget included an efficiency dividend of $1.8B across the public service, and it is unknown what the impact on FRV will be.

See also

• Metropolitan Fire Brigade
• Country Fire Authority
• VFBV

References

1. "Reforming Victoria's Fire Services". Fire Services in Victoria. Archived from the original on 3 February 2018. Retrieved 29 December 2017.
2. "About us". Fire Rescue Victoria. 25 June 2020. Retrieved 12 July 2020.
3. "Response area". Fire Rescue Victoria. 30 June 2020. Retrieved 12 July 2020.
4. "How Many Firefighters Are In Australia & NZ? [Paid Vs Volunteer]". Fire Rescue Hub. 23 June 2020. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
5. "CFA: proudly volunteer". Country Fire Authority (Press release). 1 July 2020. Retrieved 13 July 2020.
6. "How Many Firefighters Are In Australia & NZ? [Paid Vs Volunteer]". Fire Rescue Hub. 23 June 2020. Retrieved 7 August 2020.
7. 2009 Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission Final Report Summary (PDF) (Report). Volume 1. Parliament of Victoria. July 2010. pp. 18–19. ISBN 9780980740820. Retrieved 19 January 2018.
8. Willingham, Richard (21 June 2019). "Four-year political storm ends, but real test for fire services reforms lies ahead". ABC News. Retrieved 8 January 2020.
9. Anderson, Stephanie (12 August 2016). "CFA: How the Victorian Country Fire Authority dispute unfolded". ABC News. Retrieved 12 July 2020.
10. "FAQ Archive - Fire Services in Victoria". Fire Services in Victoria. "Who is responsible for reviewing the metropolitan boundaries? How often do boundaries get reviewed?". Retrieved 29 December 2017.
11. "Firefighters' Presumptive Rights Compensation and Fire Services Legislation Amendment (Reform) Bill 2017 - Part 4 Amendments relating to the Fire Rescue Victoria fire district". Legislation Victoria. p. 41-50. Retrieved 12 July 2020.
12. Inquiry into the Firefighters’ Presumptive Rights Compensation and Fire Services Legislation Amendment (Reform) Bill 2017 Final Report (PDF) (Report). Parliament of Victoria. 22 August 2017. p. 30. ISBN 9781925458992. Retrieved 29 December 2017.
13. "Priority 3 - Fire Services in Victoria". Fire Services in Victoria. Retrieved 24 February 2018.
14. "FAQ Archive - Fire Services in Victoria". Fire Services in Victoria. "What is happening to Victoria’s fire services?". Retrieved 29 December 2017.
15. "FAQ Archive - Fire Services in Victoria". Fire Services in Victoria. "What happens to CFA volunteers at the 35 integrated stations?". Retrieved 29 December 2017.
16. "Metropolitan Melbourne - Fire Services in Victoria". Fire Services in Victoria. Retrieved 29 December 2017.
17. "CFA bill: State Government under fire". The Weekly Times. 28 March 2018. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
18. "Firefighters' Presumptive Rights Compensation and Fire Services Legislation Amendment (Reform) Bill 2017". Legislation Victoria. Retrieved 12 July 2020.
19. McDonald, Robert. "Parliament of Victoria - 10. Bills". www.parliament.vic.gov.au. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
20. "Victorian Statute Book Act". www.legislation.vic.gov.au. Retrieved 26 May 2018.
21. "Firefighters' Presumptive Rights Compensation and Fire Services Legislation Amendment (Reform) Bill 2019". Legislation Victoria. Retrieved 12 July 2020.
22. "Metropolitan Fire And Emergency Services Board, United Firefighters Union Of Australia, Operational Staff Agreement 2016" (PDF). Fair Work Australia. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
23. "Firefighter shuffle is back on table". Herald Sun. 22 May 2019. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
24. "Delivering for all Victorians Victorian Budget 19/20". budget.vic.gov.au. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
25. "Fire Services Property Levy". State Revenue Office of Victoria. Retrieved 28 May 2019.
26. "Fire services property levy current rates". State Revenue Office of Victoria. Retrieved 28 May 2019.

External links

• Fire Services Reform information page at Department of Premier and Cabinet website