NSW Bushfire Inquiry

Dave Owens APM, former Deputy Commissioner of NSW Police, and Professor Mary O’Kane AC, Independent Planning Commission Chair and former NSW Chief Scientist and Engineer, led the six-month inquiry, which reviewed the causes of, preparation for and response to the 2019-20 bushfires.

The NSW Bushfire Inquiry met with and directly heard from people who had been affected by the 2019-20 bushfires. These meetings occurred face-to-face and online for communities in the following local government areas and localities:

• Lithgow
• Tenterfield 
• Glen Innes
• Lake Conjola
• Mid North Coast 
• Snowy Monaro 
• Snowy Valley
• Shoalhaven 
• Northern Rivers and Clarence Valley
• Far South Coast 
• Wollondilly 
• Southern Highlands
• Hawkesbury 
• Blue Mountains

NSW Bushfire Inquiry progress reports

Access the quarterly progress reports on adopted recommendations from the 2020 NSW Bushfire Inquiry

Published submissions

The Inquiry is grateful for all submissions from bushfire-affected residents, emergency and support personnel, organisations and the general public. Their stories and photographs have been very valuable informing the Inquiry’s work.

The Inquiry received 1967 submissions in total. While all submissions to the Inquiry have been considered, the Inquiry has determined not to publish submissions that:

• have not provided express consent to publish
• contain statements that may be defamatory to another party, or are likely to offend, insult, humiliate or intimidate. 

Attachments such as journal or newspaper articles have been removed, to avoid copyright infringement. 

Personal information (for example, phone numbers and addresses) has been redacted by the Inquiry.  Names of submitters have been redacted where the submitter has indicated they consent to the Inquiry publishing their submission on an anonymous basis.

Some submissions contain material that may be distressing, including accounts of people's personal experiences, images of deceased and/or injured wildlife and destroyed property.