The Morton fire in NSW threatens homes. Photo: NSW Rural Fire Service.
The experiences of anyone threatened or impacted by the New South Wales bushfires in 2019/20 will be captured in a new online research survey.
The survey will seek to learn from the experiences of anyone who was in New South Wales – residents, secondary home owners or visitors – that was threatened or affected by bushfires in in 2019/20, in order to improve community bushfire safety.
Conducted as part of the second phase of a study for the NSW Rural Fire Service, the Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, University of Wollongong and Macquarie University survey is intended for anyone who experienced bushfires in NSW in 2019/20.
Lead researcher Dr Josh Whittaker from the University of Wollongong said this next phase of the research is crucial to better understand bushfire risk and awareness.
“We want to hear about as many experiences as we can from right across New South Wales, to continue to improve bushfire preparedness, education and warnings,” Dr Whittaker said.
“This survey builds on the research interviews already conducted, and is another opportunity for even more people to share their experiences of the fires. Importantly, this includes tourists who were visiting New South Wales during the fire season and secondary home owners, not just New South Wales residents.”
Open until 1 November, the survey is anonymous and will take approximately 20-40 minutes to complete. It contains questions about people’s preparedness and responses to bushfire during the 2019/20 NSW fire season. Example questions include:
How would you rate your preparedness for bushfires?
The first phase of this research, conducted in July, August and September, involved researchers interviewing online or via phone people affected by bushfires in NSW about their experiences.
If you have any questions about the study you are welcome to contact Dr Josh Whittaker from the University of Wollongong at wjoshua@uow.edu.au.
This project is being undertaken for the NSW Rural Fire Service and the results will be used to inform strategies to improve community bushfire safety in NSW.
Results from the research will be available on the CRC website once the study is complete. A donation from Jefferies Financial Group to the Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC to support this research is gratefully acknowledged.