1 in 3 Aussies not prepared for bushfire season, says Red Cross ahead of Emergency Preparedness Week

The Black Summer decimated communities around the country, but as the bushfire season starts up again, there are concerns too many Australians have no emergency plans in place.

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Too many Australians are ill-prepared to face another bushfire season, with more than one in three (35 per cent) revealing they have done nothing to get ready, the Red Cross has warned.

But residents in some bushfire-prone areas have doubled down on their preparation efforts, creating Facebook groups and community calendars so neighbours can be aware of each other’s movements over summer.

Such initiatives can make a life-and-death difference in an emergency, experts believe.

“Connected neighbourhoods are resilient neighbourhoods. It’s your neighbour who’s going to help you in times of emergency,” said Red Cross volunteer Lynewen Maender.

“Of the communities I’ve visited during bushfire seasons, the ones that are commuting communities are not as resilient as those that are connected. They have that strong thing of ‘I need to look after my neighbour,’ and it’s really noticeable when you’re out helping these people.”

Adelaide Hills resident and Red Cross volunteer Lynwen Maeder.

Moving to a new part of the Adelaide Hills a few months ago, Ms Maender set up a Facebook group so locals could share essential information – whether that be on bushfires or COVID-19.

In Mallacoota, where more than 100 houses were destroyed by the Black Summer bushfires, neighbours have taken to sharing information about their forward movements.

“We’ve got a group of six households around us and we started what we call the Fire Tree,” resident Kate Arendsen told News Corp. “Every November somebody puts out a calendar and we say where we will be for the next three months, so we know where our neighbours will be and we don’t have to worry about them.”

Having lived in the area for 14 years, Ms Arendsen said a bad bushfire season was “a matter of when, not if”.

A new Red Cross survey reveals 56 per cent of Australians are planning for the risks of future disasters. For Ms Arendsen, that has involved keeping copies of treasured photos and documents on USB sticks away from the family home; taking photos of valuables for insurance purposes; and keeping “runaway boxes” in the garage with food, water, toiletries, medications and copies of prescriptions.

The getaway box. Red Cross is encouraging Aussies, particularly those living in areas where natural disasters may occur, to prepare boxes of essential items they can grab in an emergency.

“If we’re cut short and have no time to prepare on the day, they can be just tossed into the car and off we go,” she said. “Before it happens you can only imagine, but when you’re actually living through it, the preparation that you’ve put in beforehand means that your mind isn’t quite as muddled; you know that you are going to have your medications there if you need them, you know that heaven forbid, you’d have toilet paper, you would have a toothbrush and toothpaste. Just simple things, so you don’t have to worry.”

Red Cross has spent or disbursed $162 million on bushfire recovery since the Black Summer, including $148 million in grants provided to 5055 people.

A spokesperson said administrative support costs for the organisation were currently at less than 4 cents in the dollar for each dollar donated.

Mallacoota resident and Red Cross volunteer Kate Arendsen.

Red Cross National Resilience Adviser John Richardson.

This week is Red Cross Emergency Preparedness Week, in which the organisation urges Australians to make plans and have the conversations that could save them in the event of a disaster, whether that be a bushfire, flood or pandemic.

Red Cross National Resilience Adviser John Richardson said the organisation’s recent survey of more than 1000 Australians showed “strong levels of community trust, with around six in 10 believing the community will come together to help in a crisis.”

But 40 per cent of survey respondents also said they didn’t believe their community was sufficiently prepared for a disaster, whether that be a bushfire, heatwave or flood.

Mr Richardson said “taking simple actions like being informed, having a reliable person you can call on for assistance, and getting organised by making a plan makes people more resilient in the face of increasing hazards”.

The Spring forecast from the Bureau of Meteorology predicts above average rainfall for most of eastern Australia. However above average temperatures are likely in the north of Australia and the far southeast, including Tasmania.