Fire inquest hears concerns

HQ: The command centre at the Karikari fire station during the 2011 blaze that claimed two lives.

A poorly resourced Far North Rural Fire Authority, coupled with multiple agencies co-ordinating the fight against a large scrub fire rather than one incident controller, contributed to the deaths of two Far North men in 2011, according to evidence given to the Coroner's Court in Whangarei this week.

Kerikeri pilot John (Prickles) de Ridder (69) and 54-year-old Department of Conservation ranger William Macrae, from Awanui, were on a fire reconnaissance flight on the evening of November 30, 2011 when their helicopter crashed into the sea off the Karikari Peninsula.

They had been instructed to finding five people who were reported to be trapped between the fire and the sea, all five fleeing in a dinghy. They were subsequently taken aboard a fishing boat.

The inquest began in December but was adjourned by Coroner Brandt Shortland until this week, to enable it to address specific issues.

Paul Baker, manager rural fire for the National Rural Fire Authority, told the inquest a review had identified a number of failures in terms of co-ordination between emergency services.

Karikari Peninsula Chief Fire Officer Thomson Lawrence becoming the incident controller while DOC staff in Kaitaia dealt with the helicopter led to miscommunication between emergency services, he said.

Mr Baker told that the Far North Rural Fire Authority had been established some five months earlier, but its draft fire plan had not been adopted when it should have been (by November 30, 2011).

An incident controller, assisted by an operations manager, together with a suitably qualified person to direct air operations, had been needed, that being the proper chain of command.

"A well-run rural fire service has capable people who bring chaotic situations down to a very minimal level," he said. "Northland needs more able people in firefighting roles if it is to perform its duties more satisfactorily."

A direction from Auckland Fire Service communications for the helicopter to be taken off firefighting duties and be diverted to rescuing people had been outside its role, he added.

Earlier New Zealand Fire Service national operations manager Stuart Rooney told the inquest of the need for better liaison between emergency services during large fires, but Far North Principal Rural Fire Officer Myles Taylor rejected criticism of the way emergency services had responded to the fire.

He, in turn, criticised the National Rural Fire Authority for its reluctance to declare a regional emergency, and its failure to provide manpower when it was needed. He also told the court a significant amount of content in a report that looked at, among other things, processes used in the deployment and co-ordination of fire crews had been biased and impractical.

One had to understand the considerable distances firefighters travelled in Northland, and the fact the first few hours of large fires were often chaotic in terms of firefighting. And November 2011 had been busy, with firefighters working every day.

He had been at a major fire when he was informed of the blaze on the Karikari Peninsula, about 7.20 that evening, and had spoken to Alan Macrae, from the Department of Conservation, who was on the ground.

He had wanted to determine the firefighting resources involved, and trusted Mr Macrae's decision-making.

At that time, he said, he was not aware a helicopter had been dispatched, but even if he had known it would not have surprised him, given they had been used successfully in firefighting over the previous 10 years.

Mr Taylor said both Mr de Ridder and Mr Macrae were experienced, and would not have flown if they thought it was dangerous at that time and in those weather conditions.

"The National Rural Fire Authority was reluctant to declare a regional emergency, and if we had had another fire at the same time, we'd have struggled to cope," he told the court.

The inquest concluded yesterday, Coroner Shortland reserving his findings.