Labor urged to address fire station delays months before fatal blaze

The City of Greater Geelong urged the state government to take responsibility for delays in delivering a promised fire station in Armstrong Creek, months before a fatal house fire.

Days before the fatal fire, the government had blamed council delays for holding up the project.

Geelong's mayor says the project must be built as a priority, as "lives are at risk as long as it's not built".

The Geelong council wrote to the state government just months before a fatal Armstrong Creek house fire, urging it to take greater responsibility for delays in delivering a promised fire station for the major growth area.

On Saturday, an Armstrong Creek house fire killed a 65-year-old man, eight years after the state government pledged to build a new fire station in the area as "an absolute priority" following a fatal house fire in the suburb in 2017.

The latest death came just days after the ABC questioned the state government about the failure to deliver the promised fire station.

An unattributed response from the government last week claimed progress on the development of the station was "facing delays due to council and service authorities approval" at the government's preferred Boundary Rd site.

But a letter seen by the ABC shows City of Greater Geelong CEO Ali Wastie wrote to the emergency services minister in June urging the government to take responsibility for delays.

"The Victorian government's decision to acquire and seek to develop this land significantly ahead of neighbouring properties has created foreseeable and well understood constraints, most critically, the absence of coordinated servicing infrastructure, including drainage," Ms Wastie wrote.

"The Victorian government has elected to purchase and pursue development of a site that was not yet ready for delivery.

"It is therefore neither accurate nor appropriate to suggest that the city is responsible for the consequences of that decision."

Ms Wastie wrote the letter responding to government assertions the City of Greater Geelong was responsible for delays in delivering the project.

"The city categorically rejects these claims," Ms Wastie wrote. "It is essential that public commentary reflects the reality of the situation and that accountability sits where responsibility properly lies."

Just two days before the weekend's fatal house fire, Premier Ben Carroll was questioned about undelivered election promises — including the fire station — during a visit to Geelong.

Mr Carroll travelled to Geelong on Thursday for a transport announcement, where the ABC was able to directly ask why Geelong residents should trust that the latest round of election promises would be kept.

"I'm asking the people to look at what I've delivered in three months," Mr Carroll said, before spruiking his delivery of the Big Build Royal Commission.

"Yes, we could always do better. We can always do more.

"But I've made it very clear that I'll be a financially responsible premier, socially progressive and also deliver services that I know that people of Geelong need."

Speaking on Sunday, Ms Wastie said she felt the government's blaming of the city for delays to the project had "been inherent for some time".

Ms Wastie said a lack of funding for the project in the state government's latest budget was particularly concerning.

"We're not interested in blaming anyone, we just want to make good on this progress for a fire station in Armstrong Creek.

"These assets need to come on in a timely way, and for this one that needs to be an absolute priority for the incoming government."

Geelong Mayor Stretch Kontelj said he wanted it to be clear that the city was not holding the project up.

"The government bought land in a paddock that hadn't yet been developed, and hasn't got all the services, or hasn't got any services in it, and as far as I understand that land hasn't been settled as far as the purchase is concerned yet," Cr Kontelj said.

"They can't be blaming council for that [delay]."

Cr Kontelj said it was time to "put the blame game to one side" and get the fire station built.

"We all recognise that that fire station needs to be built as soon as possible, Armstrong creek is the fastest growing area of Geelong, and it's a facility that literally will help save lives," he said.

"We just need to take the politics out of it and get it done … because we know that lives are at risk as long as it's not built."

The ABC on Sunday sent questions to the state Labor Party regarding the delivery of the fire station.

A comment attributed to a Labor spokesperson was supplied.

"This was a tragic incident and our thoughts are with this man's family and friends," the spokesperson said.

Further unattributed comments noted the party's belief Armstrong Creek was "well served and well protected" by nearby CFA and FRV brigades.

United Firefighters Union (UFU) secretary Peter Marshall said fire crews were paged to attend the Armstrong Creek house fire at 2.54am on Saturday morning, with a CFA crew from neighbouring suburb Grovedale arriving at 3:05am — 11 minutes later.

An FRV crew from Belmont arrived at 3:07am, he said.

"Where the fire station was supposed to be built is only four-and-a-half kilometres away from this particular event," Mr Marshall said.

A fire truck is currently parked behind temporary fencing across the road from the Armstrong Creek land earmarked for the new station, in what has been referred to as a makeshift fire station.