Precautions you can take ahead of a bushfire
Precautions you can take ahead of a bushfire
Around the house
- Clear leaves from gutters, roofs, and downpipes; mow your lawn; and trim low-lying branches around your home if safe to do so, or engage a professional if necessary
- Fit steel wire mesh screens to windows, doors, and vents
- Seal gaps in external cladding on the roof and walls
- Close off open areas under decks and floors
- Make sure the pressure relief valves of LPG cylinders installed in your home face outwards
Around the yard
- Tidy your back yard and move flammable material such as piles of wood, paper, boxes, crates, and garden furniture away from your home
- Make sure garden hoses are long enough to reach the perimeter of your property
- If you plant trees and shrubs around your home, choose those that have a lower oil content – they’re less likely to catch fire
- If you have a swimming pool or water tank, consider using a portable pump that will help you fight the fire
Things to do
- Obey directives and regulations on the use of barbecues and open fires during Total Fire Ban days
- Draw up a home emergency plan that includes where you and your family will go if you must evacuate your home and how you’ll contact each other if separated
- Keep a list of emergency telephone numbers within easy reach – local or state emergency service, police, ambulance, hospital, gas, and electricity – plus details of local relief centres and evacuation routes
- Put together an “emergency pack” containing tinned food, a tin-opener, water, a first-aid kit, blankets, warm clothing, spare batteries, matches and gloves
- Equip yourself with a battery-powered portable radio and torch so you can stay updated on power restoration and evacuation alerts if the power is cut
- Gather sentimental, important and valuable items, documents, and photos you can take with you if you need to evacuate
- Consider keeping valuables items and documents in a fire-resistant safe or metal cabinet
Precautions you can take during a bushfire
Precautions you can take during a bushfire
Around the house
- Avoid going into the bush if there is smoke or fire in the vicinity
- Patrol the outside of your property
- Make sure you have ladders, shovels, and metal buckets to allow you to extinguish embers and spot fires
- Bring your garden hose inside so fire won’t melt it and move any firefighting equipment to a place where it will not get burnt
- Close windows, doors, and shutters
- Block the downpipes on your house with a sock filled with sand or soil and fill the roof gutters with water
- Block gaps beneath doors, using wet blankets or towels
- Collect water in buckets or the bath
Things to do
- Draw up a home emergency plan that includes where you and your family will go if you must evacuate your home and how you’ll contact each other if separated
- Keep a list of emergency telephone numbers within easy reach – local or state emergency services, police, ambulance, hospital, gas and electricity – plus details of local relief centres and evacuation routes
- Put together an “emergency pack” containing tinned food, a tin-opener, water, a first-aid kit, blankets, warm clothing, spare batteries, matches, and gloves
- Equip yourself with a battery-powered portable radio and torch so you can stay updated on power restoration and evacuation alerts if the power is cut
- Gather sentimental, important, and valuable items, documents, and photos you can take with you if you need to evacuate
- Consider keeping valuables items and documents in a fire-resistant safe or metal cabinet