Are you ready for a bushfire?
With the first days of summer here, Bega Valley Shire Council is encouraging residents and visitors to start preparing for the hot days ahead by making a Bush Fire Survival Plan.
Thursday 8 December 2016
With the first days of summer here, Bega Valley Shire Council is encouraging residents and visitors to start preparing for the hot days ahead by making a Bush Fire Survival Plan.
Getting ready for a bush fire is easier than you think. Simply spending 20 minutes talking with your family about what you’ll do during a fire could save the lives of people you know and love.
Consider the following four simple steps:
- Make sure you understand your level of risk and discuss what you’ll do if a bush fire threatens your home.
- Prepare your home and get it ready for the bush fire season
- Know the bush fire alert levels
- Keep all the Bush Fire Information phone numbers, radio frequencies, websites and smartphone apps handy. They are a vital way to keep yourself informed.
More information can be found at http://www.rfs.nsw.gov.au/plan-and-prepare/bush-fire-survival-plan
As part of your planning it is also important to know where you could go if your other options failed for any reason. Throughout NSW the Rural Fire Service has identified a number of Neighbourhood Safer Places.
“You should be aware of these places and have them noted in your Bush Fire Survival Plan,” Mayor Kristy McBain said.
“It’s a situation none of us want to imagine, but the environment we live in calls on us to be ready.”
Neighborhood Safer Places are a place of last resort during a bush fire emergency, a safer place to gather when your home, or the home of family and friends is not a safe option. They are to be used when all other options in your bush fire survival plan can't be put into action safely.
“There are 22 designated safer places across the Shire, places like the Bermagui Community Centre, Berrambool Sports Oval and Bemboka Memorial Hall,” Cr McBain said.
Not all areas will have a Neighbourhood Safer Place. If there is no Neighbourhood Safer Place in your area, you should identify other safer locations you can go to as a last resort.
This might include a nearby home which is well prepared, a shopping centre or oval which is well away from the bush.
The current listing of Neighbourhood Safer Places for the Bega Valley can be found on the RFS website.
Photograph: Look for this sign when identifying your Neighbourhood Safer Place
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- 02 6499 2222
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Zingel Place
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