Inquiry into the fire at Reedy Swamp Tarraganda Bega/Tathra
Date of death
2018-03-18
Finding date
2021-12-17
Cause of death
Death from fire exposure during bushfire - the finding does not concern individual deaths as no deaths occurred; the inquest concerns the Reedy Swamp bushfire itself
AI-generated summary
On 18 March 2018, a major bushfire commenced in an electrical easement near Reedy Swamp and rapidly spread to the coastal town of Tathra on the NSW South Coast, destroying approximately 1,400 hectares of bushland and damaging or destroying 56 houses and 35 caravans. The fire was caused by a dead standing tree (Tree 4) falling and impacting electrical transmission line 2, causing the line to fall to ground level and creating electrical arcing that ignited vegetation in the easement. The coroner's inquiry examined vegetation management practices, electrical infrastructure maintenance and protection systems, and emergency response coordination and communication. Key findings identified inadequate identification of Tier 2 defect trees during vegetation inspections, insufficient scoper training in hazard tree identification, absence of measurement equipment for scopers, communication failures between emergency agencies, and delayed recognition and communication of fire spotting risks to residents. The coroner made comprehensive recommendations addressing vegetation management protocols, scoper training and equipment, electrical system settings, and inter-agency emergency service coordination.
AI-generated summary and tagging — may contain inaccuracies; refer to original finding for legal purposes.
Error types
Contributing factors
- Dead tree falling on electrical transmission infrastructure
- Inadequate vegetation management and Tier 2 defect tree identification
- Insufficient training of scopers in hazard tree identification
- Absence of rangefinder equipment for scopers to measure distances and heights
- Poor fire spread prediction and inadequate communication of spotting risks
- Delayed recognition of fire threat to Tathra
- Communication gaps and coordination failures between emergency services
Coroner's recommendations
- Essential Energy to review recloser fault curve settings in bushfire-prone areas, prioritising Group D4 settings for high-risk areas
- Essential Energy to review sensitive earth fault settings on Total Fire Ban days to determine if reduced time delays would be appropriate
- Essential Energy to revise VMCR/VMR nomenclature to avoid implying Tier 2 (fall-in) hazards are subsidiary to Tier 1 (grow-in) hazards
- Essential Energy to clarify guidance that dead, dying or structurally unsound trees should be designated Tier 2 defects even where further investigation is necessary
- Essential Energy, Asplundh and Pinnacle to review training, guidance and assessment of scopers for tree risk assessment and visual tree assessment
- Essential Energy, Asplundh and Pinnacle to ensure rangefinder binoculars or similar measurement devices are provided to all scopers
- Asplundh and Pinnacle to review scoping software to ensure it appropriately prompts consideration and reporting of Tier 2 defects
- NSW RFS to review training for Incident Management Team personnel in worst-case scenario planning
- NSW RFS to review staffing at regional Fire Control Centres to include dedicated intelligence and planning personnel
- NSW RFS to review AVL device roll-out and software to enable fireground commanders to effectively discern resource locations
- NSW RFS and Fire and Rescue NSW to jointly review radio usage protocols to ensure effective inter-agency communication
- NSW RFS and Fire and Rescue NSW to establish regular inter-agency training and practical exercises
- NSW RFS and Fire and Rescue NSW to ensure liaison officers from all fire-fighting agencies are positioned in early Incident Management Team formation
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