THE Department of Fire and Emergency Services (DFES) Bushfire Community Day held earlier this month at the Kalamunda Community Centre was a huge success with more than 2500 in attendance.

The event, a collaboration between DFES and the City of Kalamunda, was a mixture of family fun and education – families teaching young kids about fire risks; adults learning about fire risk mitigation and fire threat response.

Demonstrations showcased or described traditional techniques, including Indigenous cultural burns, as well as more modern technology such as virtual reality.

There was also a practical display about fire-wise gardening, a bushfire preparedness trail and virtual reality booth, along with lots of DFES firefighters and firefighting equipment on site at ‘hands-on’ interactive displays.

Event host chief superintendent Bushfire Centre of Excellence John Tillman said the free and interactive event was designed for all ages to learn how to stay safe in bushfire season while having fun with family and friends.

“Bushfire Community Day is a great opportunity to learn more about Western Australia’s dynamic emergency services, with opportunities for the kids to get up close with fire trucks and meet their local firefighters,” he said.

“Attendees got to see burn over drills in action, demonstration on how to safely manage a planned burn and the opportunity to ask the experts on how to limit bushfire risk including having a bushfire plan, knowing the fire danger rating system and preparing your property and emergency kit.”

Mr Tillman said the event was a great chance for big and little kids to meet firefighters, hold a fire hose, climb aboard a fire truck or take a virtual ride in the RAC Rescue Helicopter.

“But more than that, parents were able to teach their kids some really valuable lessons about fire safety and also get some tips for how they can make their own homes and gardens more fire safe.”

He said the Kalamunda Community Centre was a great venue that worked really well, and having the Red Cross, BoM and DPIRD involved added extra interest as well.

“And I think everybody got the day’s key message: bushfire is a dangerous part of life in Australia, but the risks can be mitigated with awareness and a little forethought. It is essential to have a bushfire plan – it only takes 15 minutes to make one using the free My Bushfire Plan app or website.”

Information tents were hosted by the City of Kalamunda emergency management team, Australian Red Cross and Bureau of Meteorology, while the DPIRD animal welfare in emergencies’ team provided displays and information for visitors.

Joining the fun were Emergency Services Minister Stephen Dawson and City of Kalamunda Mayor Margaret Thomas.

Both noted the importance of community fire danger awareness and preparedness, especially as we face what may be another long, hot summer.