Community Field Liaison Officer

Scope

The Community Field Liaison Officer (CFLO) is responsible for disseminating information and warnings to affected communities and act as an information conduit between the community and the Incident Management Team (IMT).

Fundamental Protocols underpin the actions of all NSW Rural Fire Service (RFS) members and must be adhered to at all times. They outline the Principles of being an RFS member and provide guidance on conduct to support the safety and wellbeing of members.

Key Accountabilities

• Assist the Community Liaison Officer (CLO) with any tasks required in the dissemination of information and warnings to the community.
• In consultation with the CLO, identify and implement opportunities for the dissemination of information and warnings.
• Maintain knowledge of current and forecast weather conditions, fire conditions, firefighting activities and affected communities.
• Undertake taskings as briefed by the CLO, including Bush Fire Information Points (BFIPs), door knocking and community meetings.
• Undertake dynamic risk assessments (DRAs) for all activities.
• Provide situation reports (Sitreps) to the CLO on a regular basis.
• Disseminate information and warnings to affected communities as directed by the CLO.
• Assist with evacuation plans under instruction of appropriate authorities. E.g. NSW Police Force (NSWPF).
• Relay urgent incident related information to CLO.
• Provide feedback to the CLO on the effectiveness of information and warnings and communicate positive and negative community sentiment.
• Respond to enquiries from the community requesting incident information.
• Liaise with relevant fireground personnel as per the Incident Action Plan (IAP).
• Assist with the community’s transition to the recovery phase, ensuring open lines of communication remain in place.
• Maintain accurate records in an operational log book.

Special Considerations

• The CFLO reports directly to the CLO, or Public Information Officer (PIO) if no CLO has been activated.
• The CFLO must ensure the appropriate equipment and information to safely undertake taskings has been received from the CLO.
• The CFLO works alongside the Rural Field Liaison Officer (RFLO) and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Community Liaison Officer (ACLO), if activated.

Related Information

• Nil