Social Fire Research

Communication of Fire Danger Warnings in New Zealand and Overseas

An important element of fire risk management is the communication of fire danger warnings. This report summarises a literature review of existing methods of communicating fire danger in New Zealand and overseas. Little assessment has been done in the past on how effective these methods are in changing behaviour and reducing ignitions.

Download a copy of the full report [649 Kb PDF].
 

Wildfires and Communities: International Perspectives

This report summarises international perspectives on community resilience to, and recovery from, wildfires. While wildfire is not a natural part of New Zealand’s ecosystems, most of these findings are relevant to the wildfire problem in New Zealand, particularly those relating to communities living on the urban fringe.

Download a copy of the full report [529 Kb PDF].
 

Wildfires and Communities:  Australasian Perspectives

National and international research on natural disasters was examined November 2004 – February 2005 to determine what information was available on community resilience and recovery after wildfire events in Australasia.  This report provides a background to proposed research aimed at understanding alternative social recovery practices.

Download a copy of the full report [406 Kb PDF].

Overview of Rural Fire Insurance Issues

This report analyses insurance against losses from rural fires and its impact on the recovery and resilience process of communities affected by rural fire events. The report reviews international studies which focused on insurance in relation to fires, as well as floods, in the United States, Australia and New Zealand. It also describes farm insurance policy as a guide to the type of insurance policies available in New Zealand. It covers public liability insurance and the Forest and Rural Fires Act 1977 extension, which highlights the importance of this insurance cover. The report also utilises the Wither Hills fire of December 2000, near Blenheim, as a case study of insurance issues, and provides a number of recommendations for landowners and fire authorities regarding rural fire insurance.

Download a copy of the report [455 Kb PDF].

Lessons Learned: Wither Hills Fire, Blenheim, December 2000

This social study highlighted authorities and members of the rural farming community during the Wither Hills Fire, near Blenheim in December 2000. It describes a number of issues identified in fighting the fire and provides an insight into the lessons learned from the fire event that have relevance for all fire authorities.

Download a copy of the report [435 Kb PDF].

Review of fire recovery planning in two regions of New Zealand

This report reviews the level of fire recovery planning undertaken in two regions in New Zealand (Canterbury and the Central North Island). It provides the basis for further research into the development of recommendations for improved rural fire community recovery methods.
 
The major finding of the study was that Rural Fire Authority (RFA) fire plans, although conforming to the legislative requirement of headings under the 4 Rs of Reduction, Readiness, Response and Recovery, vary greatly in detail between the sections. Recovery is noticeably the shortest section of all the plans. Different RFAs also vary in the detail they accord to their recovery sections, therefore provisions for rehabilitation and recovery are very much affected by the location in which the fire takes place. A lack of guidelines for social and emotional recovery, and inconsistency in the content of fire recovery plans, highlight a strong need for community recovery procedures to be more clearly defined within rural fire plans.

Download a copy of the report [479 Kb PDF].



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5 documents, showing page 1 of 1 Show page: 1