Research by a Victorian Country Fire Authority officer has shone a light on how the private sector and Government Agencies can better work together in the modern emergency management environment.
Manager for Incident Management Systems at Country Fire Authority (CFA), Luke Heagerty has completed the Emergency Services Foundation scholarship, awarded to him in 2018 and released a report on his research.
Mr Heagerty said as part of his study he travelled to the United States and the United Kingdom to explore how incident management took place in collaboration with the private sector.
“[The] study was to better understand how the private sector can become a better partner to government agencies to collaborate and learn from and to understand the role that the private sector can play in the modern emergency management environment,” Mr Heagerty said.
“Strong models of success are currently in operation in parts of the United States and United Kingdom, where organisations have an ongoing relationship with government organisations before, during and after emergencies,” he said.
“As a part of my research I found that each model is unique and adaptive.”
Mr Heagerty said successful models required an ongoing relationship that was both well-managed and nurtured to ensure trust was built between government and private organisations.
“By having this relationship, it means during times of emergency, this partnership is already established to utilise and best support affected communities,” he said.
The 13-page report, Incident Management with the Private Sector, can be accessed at this PS News link.
