THE system for managing bushfires in WA is “failing citizens and the government”, a special inquiry into the deadly Yarloop and Waroona blazes has concluded.

Euan Ferguson, who was appointed to conduct the review of January’s devastating fires, recommends the State Government create a Rural Fire Service.

The former Victorian Country Fire Service chief said the fire needed to be a catalyst for improvements to “strengthen community safety and fire agency capability”.

And he warned that if change does not occur, “then the prospect of a future catastrophic bushfire event is increasingly likely”.

Premier Colin Barnett said the government would formally respond by September.

The historic timber town of Yarloop was almost wiped out in the firestorm, which destroyed 181 properties, including 162 houses and the heritage-listed workshops and hospital.

Other Stories

How much could Delly earn next contract?

Melbourne’s blue skies last a short time only

‘You’re becoming an embarrassment’

‘Gay lover’ says shooting was ‘revenge’

‘The jig’s up, honestly and truly’

Sam unleashes another ghastly attack

Yarloop men Malcolm Taylor, 73 and Vietnam veteran Les Taylor, 77, were killed in their homes.

“I recognise that this conclusion will be contentious. But it is supported by many submissions and the repeated observations that point to the need for systemic change,” Mr Ferguson said in a statement on Thursday.

“Perhaps the most compelling support for fundamental change is the dramatic increase in the number and impact of damaging and costly bushfires over the last six years in Western Australia.

“There is a strong argument that the state needs to readjust expenditure away from fire response and recovery, towards a greater investment in prevention and fuel hazard management.

“This includes investing more in the education, resilience and readiness of local communities and individual citizens.”

The bushfires were sparked by lightning on January 6 in Lane Poole reserve.

At the time, Yarloop residents criticised the Department of Fire and Emergency Services over a lack of communication about the severity of the threat.

Some residents claimed they did not receive an emergency SMS until it was too late while others said they were never doorknocked by police.

Mr Ferguson on Thursday said he found no evidence that individuals were negligent or did not act in good faith.

He also reinforced the “difficulty and enormity” of the task facing fire managements, describing it as the probably the most complex fire I have seen in my 39 years of rural firefighting”.

His report makes 17 recommendations for strategic change and 23 agency opportunities for improvement. He said the recommendations would “reframe rural fire management in WA “for the benefit of the community and for Bush Fire Brigade volunteers”.

“There is a strong argument that the state needs to readjust expenditure away from fire response and recovery, towards a greater investment in prevention and fuel hazard management,” he said.

“This includes investing more in the education, resilience and readiness of local communities and individual citizens.

“Many of the recommendations of this Special Inquiry will enable this shift in focus, and the creation of a rural fire service in particular, is vital to doing so.

“The momentum must be maintained into the future. If such change does not occur, then the prospect of a future catastrophic bushfire event is increasingly likely.”

NSW, Victoria and South Australia have specialist bodies to handle bushfire management outside the metropolitan area.

Originally published as Yarloop report: Fire system ‘failing’ WA people