The Melbourne Newsroom

Melbourne University’s Centre for Advanced Journalism will host a community forum in Marysville next Wednesday, 21 September to discuss the findings of its research into the 2009 Black Saturday bushfires.

Stories from survivors interviewed by media after Black Saturday – including those who used interviews to let loved ones know they were safe - form part two of a study into Black Saturday media coverage, to be launched at the University of Melbourne this Thursday, 25 August.

Houses built in bushfire hotspots that met current Wildfire Management Overlay (WMO) standards were three times more likely to survive the Black Saturday fire conditions, according to a new University study.

Improvements in risk management processes can and should be made to avert the next bushfire catastrophe, says Dr Les Coleman, in the wake of the release of the bushfires Royal Commission interim report.  "It comes back to looking at the risks, putting in place mechanisms to try and reduce those risks ahead of time, and recognising that when these extreme events start to unfold, its really beyond anyone's physical resources to handle every part of it."