Do you have your emergency checklist ready?

Published on 12 November 2024

Gannawarra Shire residents will be better prepared for the municipality’s next emergency thanks to the development of new emergency preparedness material.

Following a recommendation from the Gannawarra Community Resilience Committee, Council has united with Mallee Family Care, Country Fire Authority, VICSES and Australian Red Cross to produce an Emergency Checklist – Plan and Prepare fridge magnet and additional resources.

“As we have seen in recent years, there can be little warning when an emergency occurs, such as a flood, fire, extreme heat or storms,” Council Chief Executive Officer, Geoff Rollinson said.

“The Emergency Checklist – Plan and Prepare material encourages residents to prepare now for the next emergency, which will reduce the stress they may face when evacuating to somewhere safer.”

The Emergency Checklist – Plan and Prepare fridge magnet lists three tasks residents can complete now:

• Making an emergency plan, with the magnet featuring links to the Country Fire Authority, VICSES and Australian Red Cross websites.
• Taking photos of important documents that can assist with insurance claims.
• Collecting items that can be added to an emergency kit that can be taken when evacuating.

“Any tasks that you can complete now will alleviate the stress of preparing your loved ones for evacuating during our next emergency,” Mr Rollinson said.

Emergency Checklist – Plan and Prepare magnets are available from the Cohuna and Kerang neighbourhood houses, Mallee Family Care's Kerang office and Council’s Customer Service Centres at Cohuna and Kerang.

The Emergency Checklist – Plan and Prepare initiative is made possible thanks to funding from Emergency Recovery Victoria and supported by Victorian and Commonwealth Governments under the Commonwealth-State Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements (DRFA) as part of the Gannawarra Community Flood Recovery Program.

ABOVE: Gannawarra Shire Council Chief Executive Officer, Geoff Rollinson with the Emergency Checklist - Plan and Prepare fridge magnet.