EUROA, VIC. — Residents impacted by the Longwood–Berrys Lane Bushfire are invited to participate in a debrief to help reflect on the response and early recovery efforts of Council after the January 2026 fires.
CEO Rachelle Quattrocchi said the review on Tuesday, June 16 (today), is an opportunity for residents to share their experiences and perspectives to help inform future emergency management and recovery practices.
“Community feedback is an important part of continuous improvement and ensuring lessons are captured directly from those impacted,” she said.
“The objective of the debrief is to identify what worked and what can be improved in Council’s incident response” Ms Quattrocchi said.
The community sessions will be facilitated by experienced emergency management consultant Paul Jerome, pictured, from Emergency Management Consultancy Services Pty Ltd.
“This community debrief provides an opportunity to share experiences, insights and feedback in a safe and respectful environment and we welcome your insights,” Mr Jerome said.
“We need to acknowledge the fatigue, stress, emotions and loss participants will have experienced during the fire, as well as the lessons learned and identify what worked well.”
Two sessions will be held at the Recovery Hub at 34 Railway Street, Euroa, today, Tuesday, June 16, – a central location for the shire’s smaller townships most impacted by the bushfires.
- Session 1: 4pm – 5.30pm
- Session 2: 6pm – 7.30pm
The sessions will focus on understanding:
- challenges experienced by community members
- what worked well during the response and early recovery
- how to strengthen community response and resilience
- how to prepare better for future emergencies.
Both sessions will be run the same, over 90 minutes, with community members welcome to attend whichever time best suits them. Bookings are not required but we suggest you arrive 15 minutes early to have a cuppa and secure a seat.
Mr Jerome will also lead internal debriefs with Council teams involved in fire response and recovery efforts, as well as a strategic management review.
Outcomes from these sessions will be captured in a “lessons learnt” summary report which that will be made available to the community by the end of July.
Ms Quattrochhi said both sets of debriefs, internal and community, would contribute to a final review of policies, plans and procedures, training, equipment and resources for future incidents.
“It’s crucial we are all fully prepared, both Council leadership, operational teams and our communities, to face these challenging cycles of natural disasters in our region,” she said.
For further information, don’t hesitate to get in touch with the Recovery Team via the Recovery Hub on 1800 065 993.
