- A volunteer firefighter's photo is voted State winner in Resilient Australia Awards
- WA projects commended for helping communities prepare and recover from disasters
- National awards to be announced at ceremony in Canberra next month
A powerful photograph of Western Australia's emergency services in action at a regional road crash is in the running for a national prize after being voted the State winner in the Resilient Australia Awards.
Emergency Services Minister Stephen Dawson said the stirring image, titled We Work Together as One, visually captured the joint response from firefighters, police, paramedics and the RAC Rescue Helicopter at a crash in Gingin.
It was taken by Gingin Volunteer Fire and Rescue Service member Nikki Woods, who will now represent WA as a finalist in the people's choice category at the national awards in Canberra on 20 November 2024.
The Resilient Australia Awards, in their 25th year, recognises the hard work of individuals, organisations, governments and schools who are developing programs and initiatives to help communities better prepare for, respond to, and recover from natural disasters.
Three other submissions were highly commended in their respective categories for the WA awards, including a joint initiative between the Department of Fire and Emergency Services (DFES) and the Department of Justice, which trains minimum security prisoners to assist with bushfire mitigation. Working under Section 95 of the Prisons Act, the teams have now clocked up more than 10,000 hours of bushfire mitigation activities.
Also highly commended was a Shire of York project which aims to reintroduce cultural burning techniques on Ballardong Country, and a Curtin University pilot program to provide mental health support for young people in disaster-prone areas.
The Resilient Australia Awards are proudly sponsored by the Australian Government in partnership with DFES and managed by the Australian Institute of Disaster Resilience.
To download Nikki Woods' winning photograph click here.
As stated by Emergency Services Minister Stephen Dawson:
"Western Australia has experienced a number of serious weather events, such as cyclones, floods and bushfires in recent years which highlights the importance of disaster resilience.
"Through climate change, these types of events could become more frequent and so it's critical that we continue to think outside the box about how we can help communities be better prepared and recover effectively.
"Individuals, businesses and government all have a role to play in building resilience and it is great to see some outstanding WA initiatives recognised for their work in this space.
"Congratulations to Nikki Woods on her win and to all those who involved in submissions that won recognition for programs that can help protect local communities.
"Nikki's stirring photograph certainly captures resilience in action and is a celebration of the teamwork and unwavering commitment of WA's emergency services.
"I wish her the best of luck in the national Resilient Australia Awards next month."
