The Beagle
Dec 1, 2016
Timely reminder for holiday time
This summer is likely to be hotter and drier than normal. Federal Member for Gilmore, Ann Sudmalis, is urging people to be prepared for what might lie ahead.
The first step all people should do is to prepare a bushfire survival plan, available from the NSW Rural Fire Service website www.rfs.nsw.gov.au.
If you can’t get the information online, here are some brief survival tips:
What should you take? Prepare a list of important documents, and store them in a safe place.
Do you have a pet? Get water bowls and food ready.
Make sure you have a phone charger if you’re evacuated.
Put together an emergency kit including basics such as rations, torches, battery-operated FM radios, spare batteries and personal identification.
Most people don’t want to leave their homes, so to help you stay, unless requested by emergency services:
Clean up around the home, so no embers can land and catch.
Mow the grass and remove the cuttings.
Trim overhanging trees and shrubs.
Remove piles of rubbish.
Clean leaves out of gutters because this is a prime place for embers to land and start burning.
And make sure you have a reliable water source and hoses that reach all around your home.
Mrs Sudmalis said preparation was vital, as the biggest killer during bushfire was heart attacks as people rushed around in a panic trying to get everything ready at the last minute.
The RFS website offers advice on preparing yourself and your home, while the Fires Near Me app has updates on what fires are burning in NSW.
People should also follow the RFS on social media, or local radi, to stay up to date, Mrs Sudmalis said.
To help prepare the region to survive bushfires and other natural disasters the Federal Government has provided $13.6 million towards a $27 million disaster resilience program, matched by the State Government and funding recipients.
The funding includes money for bushfire mitigation, enhancing emergency management capability, training emergency management volunteers who deliver disaster welfare services to communities, supporting, recruiting and retaining emergency management volunteers, and supporting councils and eligible organisations to manage flood risk
Media Release