NSW SES commissioner Carlene York has led the agency since October 2019 but will retire in May, conceding that criticism over the service’s handling of the Northern Rivers floods had been the biggest challenge of her career.
“The criticism we got … really hurt me personally and it hurt our volunteers,” she said.
“They were out putting their lives on the line.
“It was the biggest flood event that we had ever had and (it was) very demanding.”
Deputy commissioners Damien Johnston and Deborah Platz will alternate as acting commissioner while a permanent head is recruited.
York was the first woman to lead an emergency service agency in the state when she joined the SES after almost four decades in the NSW Police Force.
Her time at the helm coincided with several major natural disasters in NSW, including the 2019-20 Black Summer bushfires and 2022 Northern Rivers floods.
Emergency services minister Jihad Dib said York had a long and distinguished career serving the state.
“She leaves the NSW State Emergency Service in a stronger position to face future disasters, with a strengthened organisation a testament to her leadership,” he said.
York had established a positive culture among SES volunteers, improving workforce welfare and community preparedness for emergencies, Dib said.
Opposition emergency services spokesman Gurmesh Singh said the outgoing commissioner had steered the state during “some of our darkest times”.
“Despite the relentless challenges faced during her tenure, she continued to demonstrate exceptional leadership and she will leave the agency in an even stronger position than when she arrived,” he said.
The news of her retirement follows the recent appointment of NSW Police deputy commissioner Mal Lanyon as acting chief executive of the state’s Reconstruction Authority for six months, starting on Monday.
The authority rose from the ashes of Resilience NSW, which was set up following the Black Summer bushfires and scrapped after inquiries established it failed its first test in leading the disaster response following major floods in 2022.
A parliamentary inquiry found both Resilience NSW and the SES “failed as lead agencies to provide adequate leadership and effective coordination”.
A separate inquiry into the floods, commissioned by the Berejiklian government, similarly found the SES “failed to use many of the resources that were available to it” and “did not have the operational ability to coordinate multiple flood rescues”.
The SES launched a major recruitment campaign for volunteers in regional areas in March.
Australian Associated Press
