NSW Rural Fire Service Library
New books, articles and reports in your library this month
Listed below are the most current additions online and in your library,
including new books, journal articles and online reports on fire investigation,
the Fireflies TV series, fire behaviour, the 2016 Tasmanian State Natural
Disaster Risk Assessment and our mental health collection.
To borrow, just email your requests to [email protected] or use
the library’s online catalogue cart.
Finding Resources
Your NSW RFS Library can assist with information
inquiries and research tasks. All library resources
can be located on the NSW RFS Library website.
Contact NSW RFS Library for research assistance.
But first, in case you missed this
wonderful news....the NSW Rural Fire
Service has joined forces with the
National Library of Australia (NLA) to
digitise our entire collection of the Bush
Fire Bulletin, dating right back to September 1952.
eBooks
Your NSW RFS Library has a small collection of
eBooks available for all staff and volunteers to
access online. Use this link to access the collection.
Remember to sign out of a title when you have
finished to permit another reader to have access.
Please do not share this link.
All editions of the Bush Fire Bulletin are available online and are fully searchable
for free from anywhere in the world in the NLA Trove database, making this
huge historical archive easily accessible.
Training
Your NSW RFS Library provides specialised
training in information literacy for using our online
resources. Contact NSW RFS Library to organise a
group or individual training session or to request
assistance via the phone or email.
To search these bulletins, go to our Bush Fire Bulletin site at
http://www.rfs.nsw.gov.au/resources/bush-fire-bulletin where our Trove search
engine box directs you straight into the archive.
FIRE INVESTIGATION
The Esperanza fire : arson, murder, and the agony of Engine 57
(Book)
John McLean's book offers an insider’s second-by-second
account of the US Esperanza Fire and the capture and
prosecution of Raymond Oyler, later to be found guilty of
murder for setting a wildland fire.
Please contact the library to borrow this book.
The psychology of arson : a practical guide to understanding
and managing deliberate firesetters (Book)
Just published, The Psychology of Arson is the first book in its
field to focus specifically on contemporary topics relevant to
practitioners and professionals working with adolescent and
adult deliberate firesetters. Rebekah Doley, Geoffrey Dickens
and Theresa Gannon have integrated the very latest information regarding
prevalence, theory, research and practice in one accessible resource.
Please contact the library to borrow this book.
There are a number of online research databases
available for NSW RFS staff including EBSCO and
Emerald.
Borrowing library resources
NSW RFS Members may borrow resources for one
month. Items are posted to your nominated address
upon library membership. Items may be returned
via your local District Office. Search the Library
Catalogue to see what is available.
Requests to purchase material
I encourage you to suggest the purchase of material
for inclusion in the Library collection. Please email
your suggestions to the NSW RFS Library
Your Librarian
Katie Vandine
Phone: 02 8741 5455
Email: [email protected]
Fireraisers, freaks, and fiends (Book)
An award winning arson investigator, Ed Nordskog, brings you
over thirty US cases from his own files and those of his
colleagues. These true case histories cover the entire spectrum
of arson crimes from the hapless goof to the most evil and
obsessive fiends of them all.
Please contact the library to borrow this book.
Torchered Minds: Case Histories of Notorious Serial Arsonists (Book)
Another book by Ed Nordskog, written for detectives, special agents, and
arson investigators worldwide who work every day to identify, track down,
arrest, and convict arsonists. It is an extraordinarily difficult task that on a
daily basis is fraught with pitfalls and rife with myths and misconceptions.
Please contact the library to borrow this book.
A snapshot of serial arson in Australia (Book)
Rebekah Doley clarifies a profile of Australian arsonists and the
concept that arsonists can be differentiated from each other and
from other types of offender. This information has relevance to
arson treatment, rehabilitation and crime prevention
applications.
Please contact the library to borrow this book.
NFPA 921 : Guide for Fire and Explosion Investigations (Online code)
NFPA 921 sets the bar for scientific-based investigation and analysis of fire
and explosion incidents.
To access the 2014 edition and other NFPA codes please contact the library
for a logon and password. A new edition is due out in 2017.
FIRE INCIDENTS – AUSTRALIAN
Embracing the embers : remnants of a normal life (Book)
A biography involving the Caine and Buchanan families who
were at the heart of one of Australia’s worst ever natural
disasters- the Black Saturday bushfires in 2009 which razed
whole communities and claimed 173 lives.
Please contact the library to borrow this book.
FIRE INCIDENTS - INTERNATIONAL
My lost brothers : the untold story by the Yarnell Hill Fire's lone
survivor (Book)
A gripping first-person account by the sole survivor, Brendan
McDonough, of Arizona's disastrous 2013 Yarnell Hill Fire,
which took the lives of 19 "hotshots"--firefighters trained
specifically to battle wildfires.
Please contact the library to borrow this book.
DISASTERS AND EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT
Taking responsibility for ‘shared responsibility’: urban planning for
disaster risk reduction across different phases. Examining bushfire
evacuation in Victoria, Australia (Journal article)
International Planning Studies, September 2016
Urban planning has been increasingly recognized as a key mechanism for
disaster risk reduction. Challenges still exist in working across the different
phases involved in disaster management and in supporting the ongoing shift
from top-down to shared responsibility risk reduction approaches. This paper
examines these issues in the context of a bushfire emergency affecting three
urban fringe communities in Bendigo, Victoria.
Please contact the library to request a copy of this paper.
Natural disaster management in the Asia-Pacific : policy and governance
(Book)
The Asia-Pacific region is one of the most vulnerable to a variety of natural
and manmade hazards. This edited book productively brings together
scholars and senior public officials having direct experience in dealing with
or researching on recent major natural disasters in the Asia-Pacific. The
chapters focus on disaster preparedness and management, including preevent planning and mitigation, crisis leadership and emergency response,
and disaster recovery.
Please contact the library to borrow this book.
Demographics for Fire Risk Analysis (Online report)
This report presents an analysis of demographic factors that are relevant to
bushfire (wildfire) risk analysis. The focus of the report is on the State of Victoria
in Australia which is one of the world’s most naturally-fireprone areas. The
report represents a partnership between DELWP and GeoScience Australia
(GA).
Please download the report using this Victorian DELWP link.
AIIMS backed by human factors evidence (AFAC
Newsletter)
September 15, 2016, by Brenda Leahy
AIIMS, the common platform of emergency
management doctrine for managing all types of
incidents in Australia, draws on insights and evidence
from CRC research. This case study highlights how human factors research
has been adopted and utilised in practice, featuring first hand insights from
the end users and researchers and those in between who make it fit for
purpose.
Please download this newsletter using the AFAC link.
Critical success factors for post-disaster infrastructure recovery:
learning from the Canterbury (NZ) earthquake recovery (Journal article)
Disaster Prevention and Management, Vol 25, No 5, 2016.
This article discusses synthesising critical success factors (CSFs) for
advancing post-disaster infrastructure recovery and
underpinning recovery authorities in decision making when facing
future disasters
Please contact the library to request a copy of this article.
2016 Tasmanian State Natural Disaster Risk Assessment (TSNDRA)
(Online report)
This risk assessment aims to provide emergency services with key
information to help prepare for and reduce the impact of disasters. Bushfires
were shown to remain as the greatest aggregated risk. It is the first statelevel assessment in Australia that adheres to the National Emergency Risk
Assessment Guidelines and was released this month.
The 2016 Tasmanian State Natural Disaster Risk Assessment (TSNDRA) is
found at this link. The Conversation news article about it may be found at
this link.
FIRE BEHAVIOUR
The drivers of wildfire enlargement do not exhibit scale thresholds in
southeastern Australian forests (Journal article) - waiting from Louise
Journal of Environmental Management 181 (Oct 1, 2016)
Wildfires are complex adaptive systems, and have been hypothesized to exhibit
scale-dependent transitions in the drivers of fire spread. Among other things,
this makes the prediction of final fire size from conditions at the ignition difficult.
We test this hypothesis by conducting a multi-scale statistical modelling of the
factors determining whether fires reached 10 ha, then 100 ha then 1000 ha and
the final size of fires > 1000 ha.
Please contact the library to request a copy of this article.
Fire spread prediction across fuel types: Annual project report 2015-2016.
(Online report)
Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, 2016
A new physics-based 3-D model will be a key part of this project’s strategy to
develop “next generation” fire modelling capability and capacity.
Please download the BNHCRC report at this link.
The role of weather, past fire and topography in crown fire occurrence in
eastern Australia (Journal article)
Michael Storey, Owen Price and Elizabeth Tasker,
International Journal of Wildland Fire, September 2016
We investigated the main drivers of crown fire by analysing GIS and remote
sensing data for 23 bushfires from New South Wales dry forests. Our findings
suggest that the influence on crown fire likelihood of weather, fuel levels and
slope are not adequately incorporated into current fire behaviour models and
fuel management strategies.
Please contact the library to request a copy of this article.
Projected changes in Australian fire regimes during the 21st century and
consequences for ecosystems (Journal article)
S. P. Harrison and D. I. Kelley
International Journal of Wildland Fire, September 2016
Simulations show reduced burnt area in northern Australia and increased burnt
area in central and southern Australia in response to projected changes in 21st
century climate. Climate-induced vegetation changes are as important as
climate in determining future fire regimes. Changes in fire regime are large
enough to cause changes in vegetation patterns.
Please contact the library to request a copy of this article.
PRESCRIBED BURNING
Social acceptability of fuel management in the Australian Capital Territory
and surrounding region (Journal article)
Melinda R. Mylek and Jacki Schirmer
International Journal of Wildland Fire, September 2016
This paper explores acceptability of prescribed burning, livestock grazing and
mechanical thinning used to reduce wildland fire risk to life and property, in an
Australian context. All were considered acceptable by most survey respondents.
Acceptability was associated with social trust, knowledge of fuel management
and feeling vulnerable to wildland fire.
Please contact the library to request a copy of this article.
Optimisation of fuel reduction burning regimes for fuel reduction, carbon,
water and vegetation outcomes: Annual project report 2015-2016. (Online
report)
Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, 2016
This project focuses on improving the capability of land managers to use
prescribed fire to reduce fuel loads, while at the same time mitigating the risks of
loss of water yield and carbon sequestration capacity.
Please download the BNHCRC report at this link.
FIREFIGHTING
Leading from the front : a history of the Chief Officers and Commissioners of
Fire & Rescue NSW (Book)
This coffee table book tells the fascinating story of 21 remarkable leaders men who dramatically changed the face of emergency management in
Australia. As Chief Officers and Commissioners of the NSW Fire Brigades,
these men helped transform a small, under-resourced fire service into a
dynamic, modern and highly professional emergency service.
Please contact the library to borrow this book.
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT
Building best practice in child-centred disaster risk
reduction: Annual project report 2015-2016. (Online report)
Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, 2016
Disaster education for children is a key priority in reducing the
impacts of natural hazards. The child-centred disaster risk
reduction (CC-DRR) approach is becoming increasingly popular, but rigorous
empirical research on efficacy and implementation is scarce.
Please download the BNHCRC report at this link.
Managing Animals in Disasters - improving preparedness, response and
resilience through organisational collaboration: Annual project report
2015-2016 (Online report)
Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, 2016
Concern for animals can impact on people’s decision-making and behaviour
during natural disasters – sometimes risking lives. There has been little research
in this area to guide policy development and training needs.
Please download the BNHCRC report at this link.
ECOLOGY
Habitat Highways Save Animals from Fire (Magazine
article) -proquest
By Annabel Smith. Australasian Science 37.8 (Oct 2016):
22-25.
Australia has a long history of fire, and many plants and
animals are adapted to a particular frequency, intensity, size and timing of fire.
This fact is often used to justify hazard reduction burning in nature reserves.
Management agencies even state that hazard reduction burning not only
protects lives and property but also conserves biodiversity. Our research,
however, suggests that this view is too simplistic. We found that fire can act in a
similar way to habitat fragmentation, restricting the movement of animals across
the landscape.
Please contact the library to request a copy of this article.
HEALTH AND SAFETY
Critical Review of Health Impacts of Wildfire Smoke Exposure. (Journal
article)
Environmental Health Perspectives 2016 Sep; Vol. 124 - EBSCO
Wildfire smoke contains numerous hazardous air pollutants and many
studies have documented population health effects from this exposure.
Consistent evidence from a large number of studies indicates that wildfire
smoke exposure is associated with respiratory morbidity with growing
evidence supporting an association with all-cause mortality.
Please contact the library to request a copy of this article.
Australia's health 2016 (Online report)
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare
Australia’s health 2016 is the 15th biennial health report of the
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. This edition profiles
current health issues in a collection of feature articles and statistical snapshots
that cover a range of areas, including: The health status of Australians; Health
expenditure; The major causes of ill health; Determinants of health; Health
through the life course; Health of Indigenous Australians; Preventing and
treating ill health; Health system performance.
Please download the report using this link.
LEADERSHIP AND MANAGEMENT
QF32 (Book)
In 2010, what began as a routine long-haul flight from
Singapore to Sydney came within a knife-edge of becoming
one of the world's worst ever air disaster. Tracing Richard De
Crespignys life and career up until that fateful
flight, QF32 shows exactly what goes into the making of a
top-level airline pilot, and the extraordinary skills and training
needed to keep us safe in the air.
Please contact the library to borrow this book.
MENTAL HEALTH
Mental Health and You - our library's collection.
A drop down list of a selection of books that focus on the topic of mental
health is found on the library homepage under Lists or by using this link.
Contact the library to borrow any of these books.
The noonday demon : an atlas of depression (Book)
Andrew Solomon’s National Book Award-winning, bestselling,
and transformative masterpiece on depression, The Noonday
Demon examines depression in personal, cultural, and scientific
terms.
Please contact the library to borrow this book.
Trauma-related stress in Australia : essays by leading Australian thinkers
and researchers (Book)
Launched this month at the AIPM, Trauma-related stress in Australia’
contains 27 short essays by leading Australian and US clinicians,
researchers, administrators and observers of the stress that often follows
exposure to, or involvement in, violence and brutality. The scope and scale
of the problem are immense and it touches the lives of millions of
Australians.
Please contact the library to borrow this book. This collection of essays is
also available online at the Australia21 link.
METEOROLGOY
Climate of the nation 2016: Australian attitudes on climate change
Climate Institute, 26 September 2016
Examines the views of Australians about matters relating to climate change and
energy policy, through the ups and downs of changing weather patterns, related
natural disasters and the waxing and waning of the political landscape.
Please download the Climate Institute survey results at this link.
REMOTE SENSING
The potential for LiDAR technology to map fire fuel hazard over large
areas of Australian forest (Journal article) - Researchgate?
Journal of Environmental Management 181 (Oct 1, 2016)
Fuel load is a primary determinant of fire spread in Australian forests. In east
Australian forests, litter and canopy fuel loads and hence fire hazard are thought
to be highest at and beyond steady-state fuel loads 15-20 years post-fire. Here
we use Light Detecting and Remote Sensing technology (LiDAR) and field
surveys to quantify post-fire mid-story and crown canopy fuel accumulation and
fire hazard in Dry Sclerophyll Forests of the Sydney Basin (Australia) at fine
spatial-scales (20 x 20 m cell resolution).
Please contact the library to request a copy of this article.
RISK MANAGEMENT
'Lets talk about you . . .': opening space for local experience, action and
learning in disaster risk reduction (Journal article)
Disaster Prevention and Management, Vol 25, No 5, 2016.
This paper reports on the creation of innovative methods for engaging in
conversations about everyday risk.
Please contact the library to request a copy of this article.
VOLUNTEER MANAGEMENT
Out of uniform: building community resilience
through non-traditional volunteering: Annual project
report 2015-2016. (Online report)
Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, 2016
The public is usually first on the scene in an emergency
or disaster and remain long after official services have
ceased. Citizen participation is a key principle of disaster risk reduction and
resilience building. However, emergency management relies on volunteers
affiliated with official agencies and a comparatively smaller workforce of paid
staff. There is a significant and largely untapped opportunity for emergency
management agencies to contribute to community resilience by supporting nontraditional emergency volunteers.
Please download the BNHCRC report at this link.
Improving volunteer recruitment and retention: Annual project report
2015-2016. (Online report)
Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, 2016
Significant time and money is invested in volunteers by agencies. Retaining
volunteers saves substantial time and resources, increasing the capacity of
individual brigades and units. Two areas contributing to the problem of retention
have been attributed to poor leadership and cultural value alignment.
Please download the BNHCRC report at this link.
CHILDREN'S BUSH FIRE COLLECTION
Fabish : the horse that braved a bushfire (Book)
A powerful and beautifully illustrated picture book based on
the true story of a heroic horse called Fabish, who saved a
group of young horses during the Black Saturday
bushfires.This is the true story of a brave horse called
Fabish.
Please contact the library to borrow this book. More children's books from
the collection can be found at this link.
FIREFLIES ON DVD!
In case you missed this promotion earlier...
It has been over ten years since the ABC kept audiences
captivated on Saturday evenings with the drama Fireflies,
detailing the lives of volunteer firefighters in the small
community of Lost River. If you want to relive that long hot
summer fighting fires with Backa and his fire crew, then this is
the series for you.
Produced by John Edwards (The Secret Life of Us, Police
Rescue, Offspring and Big Sky), the whole series of 22 episodes, including the
telemovie, has been digitalised from beta master tape to DVD.
Several sets are now available for loan for NSW RFS members. Please contact
the library to request a copy