- Fire and Emergency Services Commissioner Darren Klemm has been appointed to a five-year term
- Commissioner to lead a restructured department with wider remit
Emergency Services Minister Francis Logan is pleased to announce that current FES Commissioner Darren Klemm, who is on an 18-month tenure, has been appointed to a five-year term, starting March 20, 2019, in charge of Western Australia's emergency services.
The FES Commissioner will lead a restructured Department of Fire and Emergency Services that now includes prevention, preparedness, response and recovery functions.
The department is also leading, for the first time, a record investment in mitigation activities to try to reduce the threat of catastrophic bushfires by resolving issues of land ownership and responsibility in certain circumstances.
Commissioner Klemm's appointment comes as the department embarks on a new era in bushfire management with the introduction of the Rural Fire Division and upcoming Bushfire Centre of Excellence.
The Commissioner has also begun work on improving the support and recognition of the State's various emergency services volunteers.
As stated by Emergency Services Minister Francis Logan:
"I am very pleased that Commissioner Klemm will be at the helm of a restructured DFES, as we embark on a new era in emergency management.
"Since taking on this portfolio, I have travelled much of this State with the FES Commissioner meeting the volunteers and DFES personnel to offer our thanks and to listen to their concerns and suggestions.
"Commissioner Klemm is a firefighter with 28 years' experience across metro and country operations so he understands the issues volunteers and officers raise.
"He is now leading a very different department that has moved from just focusing on response to looking at how we can better prevent, prepare, respond and recover from emergency situations.
"I look forward to working with Commissioner Klemm as we continue our efforts at building a safer State."
