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The Mt Wilson
Backburn

14 December 2019 - 4 February 2020

Chronology of Events

​
13 December 2019
 

  1. On 13 December 2019 the RFS plan was not to light the Mt Wilson Backburn on 14 December 2019 unless or until the Gospers Mountain Fire breached pre-determined natural containment lines. This was documented in an Incident Action Plan (IAP) dated 20:00 12 December 2019 to 20:00 13 December 2019. This document sets out operations to be conducted on the fire ground for a 24-hour period. The Plan was prepared by Adrian Johnstone and Approved by Matt Smith (IC). APPENDIX 3.
     

  2. The IAP stated under the heading Trigger, regarding a backburn operation off Bells Line of Road and Mt Wilson Road “Consider backburning operation if fire crosses the 99-northing gridline (southern-most point of Bungleboori Creek).” Under the heading “Strategy” and written in red were the words “only if trigger met”. The trigger conditions to light the Mt Wilson Backburn fire were never met. APPENDIX 1.
     

  3. To cross the 99 northing grid line the Gospers Mountain Fire would have to traverse deep ravines and creeks which would impede its progress and hopefully self-extinguish it, which is exactly what happened. The Gospers Mountain Fire the did stop burning at the Bungleboori Creek. APPENDIX 1.
     

  4. The reasons for the Trigger and Strategy in the IAP were well understood by Mt Wilson and surrounding communities of Mt Irvine, Mt Tomah and Berambing, all located in Blue Mountains LGA. APPENDIX 2.
     

  5. The risks of a backburn along the Bells Line of Road and Mt Wilson Road intersection are well known because in 1994 and 2006 backburns escaped in the area and contributed to large fires in the Grose Valley and Bowens Creek catchments that impacted & threatened nearby communities and destroyed homes and property. APPENDIX 2.

    INDEPENDENT BUSHFIRE GROUP REPORT ON THE MT WILSON BACKBURN 
     

  6. Reasons why the Incident Action Plan of 13 December 2019 may have been written in red “only if trigger met” is set out in the Independent Bushfire Group Report Fire Study 5 on the Mt Wilson Backburn (2020, within a submission to the NSW Independent Bushfire Inquiry). The study concluded the backburn failed because of the time it was started and the dry air mass that dominated the area from 14 to 16 December. The report also questioned why the backburn was started when the trigger had not been met and the Gospers Mountain Fire was distant and posed no threat. The effectiveness of the Incident Action Plan of 13 December 2019 was confirmed when the Gospers Mountain Fire went out before ever reaching Mt Wilson, Mt Irvine, Mt Tomah, Berambing and surrounding communities, and before the Mt Wilson Backburn was eventually declared out on 4 February 2020. APPENDIX 1.
     

  7. The Independent Bushfire Group Report on the Mt Wilson Backburn concluded that apart from the dominant adverse weather conditions, “backburning is likely to fail if conducted while fuel moisture conditions are well outside safe backburn prescriptions” as they were at the time. The report stated a need to “avoid risky backburns when the fire threat was low and distant”; and that “backburning at Mt Wilson and Bells Line of Road, the intersection of three fire catchments (the Wollangambe, Bowens Creek and the Grose valley) means escape into all three catchments is likely and resource intensive to suppress”. APPENDIX 1. Resources were very stretched at the time the Mt Wilson Backburn was lit as bushfire extended from above Brisbane to Sydney and fire was travelling down towards the NSW South Coast.

    SOMEONE DECIDED TO CHANGE THE STRATEGY & LIGHT A BACKBURN AT THE INTERSECTION OF BELLS LINE OF ROAD AND MT WILSON ROAD
     

  8. 13 December 2019, despite the Gospers Mountain Fire NOT crossing the RFS IAP pre-determined trigger point, a decision was made to change strategy and light a backburn at the Mt Wilson and Bells Line Road intersection the following day. APPENDIX 2.
     

  9. At 15:57 pm the NSW RFS posted a Facebook update which stated that “Bells Line of Road will be closed between Mt Wilson Road and the Darling Causeway” for four days to “allow firefighters to undertake backburning operations during milder conditions, in an effort to contain the Gospers Mountain Fire.” APPENDIX 4. The RFS did not publish any warnings or advice about the risks or dangers posed by this backburning operation (the Mt Wilson Backburn) to the communities of Mt Wilson, Mt Tomah, Mt Irvine or Berambing. APPENDIX 4.
     

  10. On the afternoon of 13 December 2019 Mt Wilson RFS Captain Beth Raines became aware of this changed strategy when she noticed via the Live Traffic app that Bells Line of Road would be closed for RFS backburning operations on 14 December. APPENDIX 2.
     

  11. Captain Raines immediately lobbied the RFS Incident Management Team in charge of the operation at Hawkesbury Fire Control Centre to have the location and timing of the proposed backburn moved. The location was renowned for backburn escaping and impacting the communities of Mt Irvine, Mt Tomah and Berambing as well as entering the Grose Valley and impacting the famous Blue Gum Forrest and other Mountain villages. The backburn would start at 10am in the morning and burn during the hottest part of the day in risky weather conditions. Captain Raines was aware of the history of escaped backburns from this location and the damage they had caused to the local communities and the environment. APPENDIX 2.

    14 December 2019
     

  12. 14 December 2019 at 9:48 am the NSW RFS lit the Mt Wilson Backburn at the intersection of Mt Wilson Road and Bells Line of Road. See APPENDIX 5 for Map and APPENDIX 6 for Situation Report.
     

  13. At 2:59 pm RFS Gospers Mountain Situation Report stated “Spot fire activity has been reported on the eastern side of the Mt Wilson/ Mt Irvine Road. Crews cannot access it. Mediums (Helicopters) are working the spot fire until the VLAT comes in.” RFS Situation Reports are an internal written record of reports from people on the fire ground about the fire activity. The report records the date, time and name of the person making the report and a summary of what is said. See APPENDIX 5 for Map and APPENDIX 6 for Situation Report. The backburn had escaped and would be extinguished 53 days later after burning out 63,700 hectares and destroying 20 homes and hundreds of properties infrastructure.
     

  14. At 3:18 pm NSW RFS Gospers Mountain Situation Report stated that the Mt Wilson Backburn was located outside containment lines. The report stated that the fire location was at grid reference “554 860”, which is approximately 800m east of Mt Wilson Road. See APPENDIX 5 for Map and APPENDIX 6 for Situation Report.
     

  15. At 4:19 pm the RFS issued a public Emergency Warning for the Gospers Mountain Fire in the Hawkesbury and Lithgow LGAs advising that it was “too late to leave” and to “seek shelter as the fire approaches”. The warning advised that fire was travelling “in a north easterly direction toward Mt Wilson.” See APPENDIX 7.
     

  16. No warning was issued for the escaped Mt Wilson Backburn which was a separate fire to the Gospers Mountain Fire, and no warning of any fire was issued for residents living in the Blue Mountains LGA. See APPENDIX 8.
     

  17. A person reading this RFS Emergency Warning for the Gospers Mountain Fire, at Mt Wilson, Mt Irvine, Mt Tomah or Berambing all located in the Blue Mountains LGA would not be concerned as this fire was still distant and not an immediate threat. This would be confirmed if a person looked at the RFS Fires Near Me App which did not show the escaped Mt Wilson Backburn. See APPENDIX 9.
     

  18. At this time this RFS Emergency warning was issued Mt Wilson village and surrounding properties were under direct attack from the escaped Backburn. For people in Mt Wilson, it was too late to leave, and they needed to seek shelter as the fire approached. Yet they did not receive an RFS Emergency Warning about this fire threat.
     

  19. At 4:22pm NSW RFS Gospers Mountain Situation Report again stated that the Mt Wilson Backburn had spotted “1.5km east of Mt Wilson road”. This location is east of the Mt Wilson Road containment line and south of Mt Wilson township. See APPENDIX 6. No RFS public warning was issued for the Mt Wilson Backburn fire.
     

  20. At 4:57 pm the NSW RFS issued another public Emergency Warning for the Gospers Mountain Fire describing the fire as located north of Mt Wilson and heading south. At the time the only immediate fire threat to Mt Wilson was from the escaped Backburn located south of Mt Wilson in the Blue Mountains LGA moving north toward the town. The warning was again issued for the Lithgow and Hawkesbury LGAs, not the Blue Mountains LGA. See APPENDIX 7.
     

  21. The only fire north of Mt Wilson was the Gospers Mountain Fire. A person reading this Emergency Warning at Mt Wilson, Mt Tomah or Berambing Blue Mountains LGA would not have thought the warning was of immediate concern as the Gospers Mountain Fire was distant. See APPENDIX 8. This belief would have been confirmed by viewing the RFS Fires Near Me App that did not show the escaped Mt Wilson Backburn. See APPENDIX 9. This confusion is confirmed by public comments made on the NSW RFS Facebook page. See Appendix 10 for Facebook comments.
     

  22. At this time, Mt Wilson village and surrounding properties were under direct threat from the backburn fire. It was too late to leave, and they needed to seek shelter as the fire approached but they did not receive an RFS Emergency warning. 
     

  23. At 6:36 pm the RFS issued a Facebook Watch and Act alert for the Gospers Mountain Fire for Lithgow and Hawkesbury LGA. The update did not mention any fire threat from the Mt Wilson Backburn south of Mt Wilson and the Fires Near Me Map did not show any fire activity from the escaped Mt Wilson Backburn. Again, a person reading this Alert at Mt Wilson, Mt Irvine, Mt Tomah or Berambing would not have been immediately concerned as the Gospers Mountain Fire was distant. Appendix 11. Yet they should have been worried as the escaped Backburn was out of control and history showed a fire started at the Mt Wilson Bells Line Road intersection caused direct danger to their communities.

    RFS ADVISE FIRE IS "WITHIN THE PLANNED CONTAINMENT LINES" DESPITE KNOWING THAT IT WAS NOT
     

  24. At 6:41pm NSW RFS – Hawkesbury District Facebook page advised “Watch and Act | Conditions have moderated in the Mt Wilson area, off Bells Line of Road…The fire remains within planned containment lines.” Several internal RFS communications preceding this update demonstrate that the RFS was aware the Mt Wilson Backburn had escaped and was burning outside containment lines. See APPENDIX 12.

    OUT OF CONTROL MT WILSON BACKBURN NOT MENTIONED IN MAJOR FIRE UPDATE
     

  25. At 8:02 pm the RFS issued a public Major Fire Update for the Gospers Mountain Fire. The update advised that fire was north of Mt Wilson. The update was for the Lithgow and Hawkesbury LGA’s. The Gospers Mountain Fire is still up to 15 kilometres away from Mt Wilson, Mt Irvine, Mt Tomah and Berambing. The Mt Wilson Escaped Backburn fire, which was burning south of Mt Wilson in the Blue Mountains LGA and only 3.5 kilometres away from properties at Mt Tomah and approaching the edge of properties in Mt Wilson is not mentioned.  See APPENDIX 13. People went to bed in these communities comforted by the fact the Gospers Mountain Fire had not progressed and unaware of the immediate danger of the escaped Mt Wilson Backburn. See APPENDIX 14.


    15 December 2019

    RFS MOVES TO PROPERTY PROTECTION BUT DOESNT WARN THE COMMUNITY OF THE DANGER
     

  26. At 8:00 am Bilpin RFS Former Senior Deputy Captain Kevin Tame started shift as crew leader on Bilpin 1 Alpha fire truck. He stated “I wasn’t aware that the Mt Wilson Backburn had escaped or posed a threat to the community. No one mentioned it at the morning briefing session before we went out. There was no community meeting called the previous evening to advise residents of any threat. This would normally happen. We weren’t told anything.”  See APPENDIX 15.
     

  27. At 10:54 am RFS Gospers Mountain Situation Report stated that the “Primary objective is property protection in Mt Tomah.” See APPENDIX 16. However, Mt Tomah residents were not informed of this.
     

  28. Ten minutes later at 11:06 am RFS Radio Communications between Air Attack (an RFS Aircraft) and Bell Operations (Bell Ops) units state concern over the situation around the escaped Mt Wilson Backburn in the Bowens Creek area.  “Things are picking up real quick now. Probably looking at 12m flame heights in places.”  And “it’s pretty much starting to pick up to a level where we can’t do anything now, let alone what it’s going to do later today.” In the same conversation Bell Operations agreed that it was “really waking up and I’m not confident that the mediums [helicopters] can hold it.” See APPENDIX 17.
     

  29. At 11:31 am the Northern Beaches Strike Team located between Mt Tomah and Bell reported over RFS radio that “it looks like it’s going to come across this direction and looks like Mt Charles is going to be hit first.” See APPENDIX 17. Mt Charles is situated approximately 2.3km west of properties on Skyline Road, Mt Tomah.
     

  30. Around this time Dr Billy Gruner of Mt Tomah and his wife Sarah Keighery were visited by NSW Fire and Rescue Crews (FRNSW) at their property on Skyline Road. Dr Gruner recalls that he was told by the crews “there has been a bit of a flair up overnight, nothing too serious. Just be prepared.” Ms Keighery stated that “they (FRNSW) were really calm and they said don’t worry, it’s going to be a small fire. So don’t worry. Don’t move your peacocks just leave them in the cage.”  See APPENDIX 18.
     

  31. At 11:55 am the NSW RFS posted on its Facebook page a Watch and Act alert for the Gospers Mountain Fire in the Hawkesbury and Lithgow LGA. It described that fire activity was increasing in the area south of Mt Wilson. Again, the warning did not include the Blue Mountains LGA in which Mt Wilson, Mt Irvine, Mt Tomah and Berambing communities are located. See APPENDIX 19 for post and See APPENDIX 20 for location of Gospers Mountain Fire at the time the warning was issued. Again, a person from these communities in the Blue Mountains LGA would not have been particularly concerned because the Gospers Mountain Fire was still distant.
     

  32. However, the warning does state “If you are in the Mount Tomah and Berambing areas, your plan is to leave or you are not prepared, leaving early is the safest option. There is limited access in and out of the area”. This is the first time the locations of Mt Tomah and Berambing are mentioned in a public RFS Fire Warning, and these communities are alerted to watch out for fire in their area. They then were left to ponder the source of the fire threat. The Gospers Mountain Fire smoke could be clearly seen way off in the distance, while the smoke from the escaped RFS Mt Wilson Backburn was much closer.
     

  33. Approximately 10 minutes after this at 12:06 pm, the NSW RFS Blue Mountains District posted on its Facebook page a “BUSH FIRE INFORMATION COMMUNITY NEWSLETTER Information on fire activity in the Blue Mountains area.” The newsletter described fire activity as located north of Mt Wilson and as part of the Gospers Mountain Fire. The update stated, “Whilst there is no immediate threat now is the time for Blue Mountains residents to ensure their properties are prepared.” See APPENDIX 21. There is no mention of the escaped RFS Mt Wilson Backburn in the Blue Mountains LGA south of Mt Wilson.
     

  34. Three minutes later at 12:09pm RFS Gospers Mountain Situation Report states that Fire and Rescue NSW are setup for property protection in Mt Tomah. See APPENDIX 22. The RFS continued to prepare for the worst from their escaped Mt Wilson Backburn while not issuing public warnings to residents in the path of their out-of-control fire.

    REQUEST FOR EMERGENCY WARNING UPGRADE FROM GROUND CREWS IS REJECTED BY THE RFS
     

  35. At 12:49pm RFS Radio Communications record a discussion between Bell Divisional Command (Bell DivCon), Bell Operations (Bell Ops). The purpose of the conversation was to request an upgrade of the warning level to Emergency Warning for the fire around Mt Wilson. Bell Ops stated that “he’s saying we should push the button. Just trying to ring the IC (Incident Controller) now.” See APPENDIX 23.
     

  36. Six minutes later at 12:55 pm the request from Bell Divisional Command to increase the Warning Level was logged by the RFS in the Gospers Mountain Situation Report. In the communication log, Bell Division Command states that “fire moving uphill from the backburn – impact within 30 minutes. Requesting increase in warning level. See APPENDIX 24.
     

  37. Eight minutes later at 1:03 pm the response came back “IC, DIC’s &PLO in conference with fire ground Ops concur that the warning level will remain at W&A in relation to Mt Wilson” See APPENDIX 24. Again, no public warning was issued for communities directly under threat from the escaped Mt Wilson Backburn fire.

    5KM BACKBURN FIREFRONT HEADING FOR MT TOMAH AND BERAMBING
     

  38. Less than one hour later at 1:58 pm an RFS Line scan (RFS aerial fire imaging) over the escaped backburn showed a 5km active line of fire now only 2.3km from impacting properties at Mt Tomah and Berambing.  See APPENDIX 25 and APPENDIX 26. Again, no public warning was issued for communities directly under threat from the escaped Mt Wilson Backburn fire.

    RFS FAIL TO ISSUE EMERGENCY WARNING AS MT TOMAH AND BERAMBING COME UNDER DIRECT FIRE ATTACK  & ITS TOO LATE TO LEAVE
     

  39. At 2:49 pm Dr Billy Gruner and his partner Sarah Keighery who live on Skyline Drive, Mt Tomah recorded video footage of a LAT (Large Air Tanker) flying over their property at Mt Tomah preparing to drop fire retardant around houses. See APPENDIX 18. Minutes after recording the footage, the LAT dropped a load of retardant over their home, their cars and themselves. Dr Billy Gruner in an interview about this incident stated, “that’s it, that’s how we came to understand we were in the middle of a major fire.” At this point they fled their home to the nearest evacuation centre 40 kilometres away at North Richmond.

    His wife Sarah Keighery said in the same interview “Just trying to get out of here, knowing which way to go was terrifying. The smoke was so thick by this stage. I remember, I couldn’t even talk. It was really stressful.” See APPENDIX 18. The RFS did not issue a public warning that fire was impacting residents on Skyline Road Mt Tomah.
     

  40. At 3:06 pm there was public confusion surrounding the source of fire near Mt Wilson, Mt Tomah and Berambing. Ali a Twitter user posted a screenshot from the Fires Near Me Map and asked the NSW RFS:

    Can we get confirmation if this alert near #MtWilson is part of #GospersMountain or burning off? There are noticed about hazard reduction in the area (and one faces the wrong way btw) but unsure if it refers to this. See APPENDIX 27.
     

  41. At around 3:08 pm an RFS Aircraft (Air Attack East) reported over RFS radio communications that there was “significant spotting that’s headed out to the east of Mt Wilson.”. Mt Tomah and Berambing are situated almost directly east of Mt Wilson. See APPENDIX 28. The RFS did not issue a public warning to these communities that were about to be impacted by fire.
     

  42. Around 3:10 pm RFS radio transmissions between Mt Wilson RFS Captain Beth Raines and RFS Cumberland Strike Team Bravo state that “we just got properties on the corner of Queens Avenue and Wynnes Rocks Road that have got fire at the back.” These properties are located on the southern side Mt Wilson township. See APPENDIX 29. The RFS did not issue a public warning to these communities that were about to be impacted by fire
     

  43. Further reports from Air Attack East around 3:11 pm state that “there is significant spotting that’s gone all the way to Zircon Creek Trail” and that “you’re probably talking about maybe twenty or thirty of them (spot fires)”.  The Zircon Creek Trail is situated across from properties in Berambing and Mt Tomah. See APPENDIX 28. The RFS did not issue a public warning to communities that were about to be impacted by fire.
     

  44.  At 3:17pm Jochen Spencer at Wollemi Wilderness Cabins, 88 Bulgamatta Road Berambing took a photo of the smoke plume from the Mt Wilson Backburn as it approached the property. See APPENDIX 30. The smoke plume in the photo is looking west toward the direction of Mt Wilson. Separate smoke plumes in a different location were emanating from the Gospers Mountain Fire.
     

  45. At around this time Mr Mike Mclean a Mt Wilson resident rang Lionel Buckett at Wollemi Wilderness Cabins on a land line to say the RFS Mt Wilson Backburn was out of control and would be impacting his property in the next 20 minutes and he needed to let everyone know. The bush telegraph was in action.  As much of this area is in a mobile phone black spot, the information had to be passed by land line phones and or driving from one neighbour to the next to tell them not to rely on RFS updates, the Mt Wilson Backburn was out of control, and they needed to take shelter as the fire would be impacting directly.
     

  46. Almost fifteen minutes later at 3:33pm the sky at Berambing turned red as spot fires from the backburn fire arrived. At this time Jochen Spencer took another photo from Wollemi Wilderness Cabins Berambing of an RFS helicopter circling a spot fire situated on the southern side of Bowens Creek valley near the edge of the property. See APPENDIX 31. After taking this photo Jochen Spencer rang Kevin Tame who was crew leader of Bilpin 1 Alpha to request help. Kevin Tame passed this information onto Hawkesbury RFS Fire Control. See APPENDIX 32.
     

  47. One minute after this at 3:34 pm RFS Gospers Mountain Situation Report logged reports from Air Attack South of spot fires stating that “Air attack identified multiple spotting in the Zircon Creek trail.” See APPENDIX 33. These spot fires are located approximately 800 metres from properties on Bulgamatta road See APPENDIX 20 which are uphill of the creek. This means the heat intensity and flame length of the backburn fire will increase as it runs up hill and impacts property at Berambing. However, by the time this call was logged at RFS Hawkesbury Fire Control the spot fires were impacting properties as can be seen in the photograph taken in APPENDIX 31. The RFS did not issue public warning to communities that were about to be impacted by fire.
     

  48. Three minutes later at 3:37 pm RFS Gospers Mountain Situation Report states “observing 4m FH [flame height] from Skyline Drive. He doesn’t think it will hit Mt Tomah more likely to be Berambing.”  See APPENDIX 33 See APPENDIX 20 for map.  Fire impact was imminent and the RFS did not issue a public warning to these communities.
     

  49. Thirteen minutes later at 3:50 pm the RFS maintained an existing Watch and Act alert for the Gospers Mountain Fire (Lithgow and Hawkesbury LGA) stating that “The fire continues to burn in the Bowen Creek area, south of Mount Wilson. Ground crews, assisted by waterbombing aircraft, are working to slow the spread of the fire. If you are in the area of Mt Wilson or Berambing, monitor the changing conditions. Know what you will do if the fire threatens”. See APPENDIX 34. At this time residents of Mt Tomah, Berambing and Mt Wilson were either sheltering from the fire and or engaged in direct firefighting activities to preserve their life and property.

    RFS FAIL TO ISSUE EMERGENCY WARNING AS MT WILSON COMES UNDER DIRECT FIRE ATTACK & ITS TOO LATE TO LEAVE
     

  50. At 3:55 pm RFS Gospers Mountain Situation Report records “that the fire has crossed Wynnes road (Wynnes Rocks Road) from west to east at Mt Wilson”. See APPENDIX 35. This put properties in the direct path of the fire. The RFS did not issue a public warning to communities that were about to be impacted by fire.
     

  51. At 3:58 pm the RFS Gospers Mountain Situation Report states “Report of spotting is now occurring into Wilderness lodge on Bulgamatta Road.” See APPENDIX 35. This is a record of a report made by Jochen Spencer at Wollemi Wilderness Cabins (see paragraph 44) about 20 minutes earlier to Bilpin RFS Bilpin Alpha 1 crew leader Kevin Tame with a request for help. The RFS did not issue a public warning to communities that were about to be impacted by fire.
     

  52. At 4:07 pm RFS Gospers Mountain Situation Report records that “9 properties being impacted on East side of Wynnes Creek Rd (Wynnes Rock Road at Mt Wilson).” See APPENDIX 33. Mt Wilson, Mt Tomah and Berambing communities were under direct fire attack from the Mt Wilson RFS backburn fire. It was too late to leave, and community members were seeking shelter, or sheltering from the fire and or engaged in direct firefighting activities to save their lives, homes and properties. At about this time Mt Wilson RFS Captain Beth Raines house was being impacted by the backburn fire. The intensity of the fire caused the FRNSW crews to withdraw. The RFS did not issue a public warning to communities that were being impacted by fire.

    EMERGENCY WARNING IS ISSUED FOR THE WRONG FIRE & ITS TOO LATE TO LEAVE 
     

  53. Finally, at 4:13pm, 3hours and 18 minutes after the first request from the fire ground to upgrade the warning for the Mt Wilson Backburn fire, the RFS issued an Emergency Warning for the Gospers Mountain Fire Lithgow and Hawkesbury LGA which stated, “If you are in the areas of Mt Wilson Mt Irvine, Mt Tomah or Berambing it is too late to leave”.  See APPENDIX 36.
     

  54. The Emergency Warning was not for communities located in the Blue Mountains LGA where the villages of Mt Wilson, Mt Irvine, Mt Tomah, and Berambing are located, but it didn’t matter as these people weren’t listening - they were too busy trying to survive a fire burn over event.
     

  55. At 4:15 pm Colin Ellis, after videoing smoke and flames coming towards his home on Skyline Road Mt Tomah, prepared to leave and take shelter at the Mt Tomah Botanical Gardens. Earlier in the day his husband, a special needs teacher, after checking the RFS Fire Near Me App had decided to attend a memorial lunch organised by parents for children he taught who had died. Colin had received a visit from the SES in the morning and later in the afternoon a visit from NSW Fire Rescue personnel. Colin had become concerned in the afternoon before taking this video and rang his husband asking them to return home to assist with fire preparation. Colin’s husband never made it back, he was caught at a police roadblock about 10 kilometres away and could not assist with defending their property.

    Colin states: “It was terrifying – I was alone and did what I could, I made sure all the fire shutters were down, curtains and furniture removed away from the window and turned the rooftop sprinkler system on before retreating 2 kilometres down the road to the Botanic Gardens.  There were three of us at the Gardens and we were trapped with fire all around us... No one should have to go through this experience.”  See APPENDIX 37.
     

  56. At 4:17pm Emergency phone calls and text messages were sent by the RFS to residents in the Mt Tomah, Mt Wilson, Mt Irvine and Berambing areas saying, “Seek shelter as fire arrives”.  See APPENDIX 38. Testimonies from people in Berambing and Mt Tomah provided in another section of this document, say they did not receive any emergency phone call or text warning messages from the RFS (See APPENDIX 18 and APPENDIX 32) , as do many others whose testimony is not included. This is not surprising as the noise of the fire would have silenced the sound of a ringing land line and the area is a mobile reception black spot.
     

  57. At about 4:30 pm Sam Ramacci of Berambing had just got up from lying down resting before commencing an evening shift on the local Bilpin RFS fire truck when the Mt Wilson Backburn fire started impacting his property.

    His family had left earlier in the day to go baby goods shopping for his heavily pregnant daughter in Penrith about 50 minutes’ drive away after consulting the Fires Near Me App for reassurance that fire attack wasn’t imminent.

    Sam’s daughter Jessica explained: “We were told that everything was under control and that we didn’t have to worry. That’s the reason why we had left to go shopping in Penrith.”

    Consequently, Sam Ramacci was left alone to defend his property. He lost his business equipment, business buildings, his tractor, his original family house, and sustained damage to his new home. His family were unable to return and help fight the fire as they were trapped at a police roadblock about 7 km away. See APPENDIX 39.
     

  58. At 4:45 pm Jochen Spencer took another photo from Wollemi Wilderness Cabins Berambing of a large fire front from the escaped Mt Wilson Backburn that had already burnt through several hundred meters of private property.  See APPENDIX 40.
     

  59. Shortly after this Jochen Spencer became trapped by fire at the cabins. He described this moment as:

    “The most terrifying moment I have experienced. The shear panic that set in at the thought of being burnt was overwhelming."

    "I became trapped and surrounded by flames, with embers burning my clothes and equipment. Somehow, like a miracle, I found a way to drive my car about 30m through the flames toward a fire shelter where I was able to seek refuge from the inferno. It was one of the hottest parts of the fire near me and when I emerged out of the bunker it was like the whole world had been transformed into ash and smoke.  I will never forget that experience.” See APPENDIX 40.
     

  60. At around the same time Bilpin RFS Truck Alpha 1 lead by Kevin Tame received frantic phone calls from Caroline Knowles. She wanted her husband RFS fire fighter John Knowles who on the truck to return home immediately as fire was impacting their property at Berambing. Kevin requested Fire Control release Bilpin 1 so they could take John home 4 kilometres away. This request was declined causing Kevin to desperately search for anyone who could take John in a private vehicle safely home to assist his wife defending their property from fire attack. By the time John got home his shed and original family home was on fire and an ambulance had been called to take his wife to hospital.  See APPENDIX 41.
     

  61. At 4:48 pm Beth Raines, Mt Wilson RFS Captain confirmed over RFS radio that it was her house at number 6 (Wynnes Rocks Road) that had been burnt down. The radio recordings state:

    Mt Wilson Captain: “Yeah just, that number six was my house, so you know.”
    Mt Wilson Leader: “Yours’s the two-storey place?”
    Mt Wilson Captain: “Affirm”.
    See APPENDIX 42.

    Captain Raines who had tried to prevent the lighting of the Mt Wilson Backburn at Bells Line Road intersection, was now directly suffering the consequences of the RFS decision the day before, to change containment strategies for the Gospers Mountain Fire. Captain Raines along with residents at Mt Tomah and Berambing and in later days residents in other Blue Mountains communities would lose their houses, suffer business losses and ongoing trauma resulting from this change of strategy.
     

  62. At 5:18 pm an RFS Facebook user posted screenshot of the RFS Fires Near Me map taken at 17:08 pm with the caption: “Why is the app not showing the fire? I hope everyone is safe”. The fire spread near Mt Tomah and Berambing was not shown on the RFS Fires Near Me map.  See APPENDIX 43.
     

  63. At 5:32pm an RFS employee working on the Gospers Mountain Fire responded to this comment stating: “It is. It’s the Gospers Mountain Fire.” However, it was not the Gospers Mountain Fire burning down Mt Tomah and Berambing, it was the Mt Wilson Backburn fire. See APPENDIX 43.
     

  64. At 5:42pm Hawkesbury Fire Control stated over RFS radio “Just letting you know we’ve had several triple 000 calls for 26 Berambing Rd”. The response from the crews in the Fire ground was “Again our resources are very, very stretched…I’ll see what I can do.” See APPENDIX 44
     

  65. At 5:52pm Mountain Lagoon RFS truck advised it was “being overrun at 3158 Bells Line Road” Berambing and that they were “losing houses”.  See APPENDIX 44. This is the location of Sam Ramacci’s property.
     

  66. At around 6:00 pm Fire Control (Firecon) has a conversation with Tomah Leader which states:

    Firecon: “We are getting reports from Fire and Rescue of something like 50 structures involved on Bells Line of Road, I just want you to confirm or dispel that.”
    Tomah Leader: “It honestly wouldn’t surprise me, but I’ll give it a crack and see what I can do for you.”
    Firecon: “If we can just confirm what we’ve got involved on Bells Line of Road, your resourcing, whether you need more? We just need to get a bit of facts going.”
    Tomah Leader: “I said before I could use another five strike teams, seriously. But I understand there are constraints with that.” See APPENDIX 44.

    This indicates the lack of RFS preparedness and resources to deal with this burn-over event and the failure of its contingency plan for managing this escaped backburn. During the evening of 15 December as the escaped Mt Wilson Backburn fire spread further through Mt Wilson, Mt Tomah, Berambing and the Bilpin regions, numerous RFS radio recordings state that there were not enough resources on the fireground.
     

  67. At 6:39 pm another Berambing resident a “70 year old male has been taken to Bilpin station for medical treatment by ambulance for shortness of breath”. See APPENDIX 45.
     

  68. Around 8:30pm Phillip Burkitt and his partner Anna and their teenage son Patrick of 3176 Bells Line Road of Road Berambing, had been fighting the fire for nearly 4 hours when Phillip suffered severe chest pains and had to be ambulanced to Hawkesbury hospital while his house was on fire. See APPENDIX 45.

    Phil states: “We had no warning to prepare ourselves of this immediate catastrophe...the sun turned red. We knew that this meant a fire would be imminent. My partner Anna, young son Patrick and I, within 10 minutes, experienced a 70m fire front affecting our property and house. We defended our home with limited resources. Our son managed to contain our animals.  The smoke and house fire-alarms were penetrating the house completely. We battled the blaze for 4 hours until I was taken by ambulance to Windsor Hospital with suspected cardiac arrest. My partner and son continued the firefight. After  hours in hospital, I returned home to continue and defend our property, until 4am.”
    See APPENDIX 46.
     

  69. By the time the sun rose the following day the danger had moved down Bells Line of Road and continued to impact communities of Bilpin and Kurrajong Heights over the next 10 days.
     

  70. RFS modelling indicated up to 20 deaths from the 15 December escaped Mt Wilson Backburn fire event. This modelling was mentioned by various people who do not want to have their name attributed to it.

    AFTER THE BURNOVER
     

  71. On the 15 December 2019 the Mt Wilson Backburn fire spread into the Grose Valley and over the coming days threatened the highly populated urban towns of the Blue Mountains along the Great Western Highway, all the way to the Penrith escapement. See APPENDIX 47. It burnt tens of thousands of hectares of the World Heritage Blue Mountains National Park and destroyed or damaged large amounts of infrastructure and more properties and continued to blanket the Sydney basin with smoke.

    16 December 2019
     

  72. On 16 December the RFS Commissioner Shane Fitzsimmons and Deputy RFS Commissioner Rob Rogers both stated in media interviews about the Mt Wilson Backburn that it was “very risky” and that “there is always an element that it may not work out”. See APPENDIX 48.

    17 December 2019
     

  73. At a press conference at RFS Hawkesbury Fire Control Centre, NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian was asked if she was concerned that homes were lost because of an RFS backburn. She stated that it was “tragic”, but we should be thinking of the “homes that were saved and potentially hundreds of lives”. However, no homes were saved because of the Mt Wilson Backburn. The backburn did go on to destroy many more homes, threaten thousands of people and destroy millions of animals and ecosystems in our World Heritage Greater Blue Mountains. See APPENDIX 49.

    20 December 2019
     

  74. On 20 December the RFS created a new fire on the Fires Near Me App called the Grose Valley Fire. The RFS stated that the Grose Valley Fire “spread out of the Gospers Mountain Fire”. See APPENDIX 50. The Grose Valley Fire was the escaped Mt Wilson Backburn. The Gospers Mountain Fire remained within the containment lines established by the RFS on 13 December 2019 and stayed distant from Mt Wilson.
     

  75. The destruction caused by the RFS Mt Wilson Backburn continued to be attributed to the Gospers Mountain Fire in the NSW Independant Bushfire Inquiry (2020). It stated that the Grose Valley Fire “had been burning since a spot fire from the Gospers Mountain Fire on 14 December 2019 spread into the Grose Valley.” See APPENDIX 51. In fact, the Grose Valley Fire had been burning since a spot fire from the Mt Wilson Backburn on 15 December 2019 spread into the Grose Valley. See APPENDIX 45.

    21 December 2019
     

  76. Further homes were lost the Mt Wilson Backburn on 21 December in Bilpin, Kurrajong Heights and Bell. The fire threatened properties in Blackheath, Mt Victoria and Hartley Vale. These communities at least had the benefit of RFS warnings before the Mt Wilson Backburn impacted their properties. See APPENDIX 52.

    Conclusion

    About 100 households at Mt Tomah and Berambing were caught in a burnover event on the afternoon on 15 December 2019 when the RFS Mt Wilson Backburn struck our communities. We have only included the testimonies of people from 5 households about the impact of this fire on them that afternoon. Everybody has a different story and all include being first terrified and then grateful to survive the burnover event.

    We hope our submission will assist the Coroner in understanding what happened on 13, 14 and 15 December 2019 with the RFS Mt Wilson Backburn and make recommendations that will help protect our communities from experiencing such an event again.

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