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Tips to stay bushfire prepared, alert and informed

With AFAC, the national council for fire and emergency services, releasing its Seasonal Bushfire Outlook for Summer 2024, the season has begun for wildfire and you should now be prepared and have bushfire plans in place. Residents, property owners, holidaymakers, and anyone passing through fire-prone areas need to be vigilant to better protect themselves and their loved ones, particularly as hot, dry winds start to fuel more severe bushfire conditions during the summer months.

Understanding high risk weather conditions

Weather conditions significantly influence the size, intensity and speed of bushfires and how dangerous they can be to the community. While conditions vary from region to region and season to season, it’s commonly the combination of wind, temperature, humidity and rainfall that affect fire risk and behaviour. For example, wet weather encourages vegetation growth, increasing the fuel load, while heat and low humidity and extended dry periods cause vegetation to dry out and becomes more flammable.

What’s the plan?

GAAM Fire Defender

Preparing a bushfire survival plan now can save precious seconds when it counts. Online planning resources can help households prepare for an emergency, ensuring there is agreement on whether to leave early, or to stay and defend, for people in high risk areas. Whether staying close to home or hitting the road, it’s important to watch out for changing bushfire alert levels in your area to make informed and sometimes lifesaving decisions, including when to take action or evacuate an area. Once a bushfire survival plan is in place, residents must proactively prepare their home, including clearing gutters, maintaining a defensible space by trimming vegetation and removing flammable debris close to the property. If choosing to stay and defend, having well-serviced equipment, like fire pumps and hoses at the ready, as well as protective gear, water and energy foods can help to sustain efforts with personal safety at the forefront. For properties at risk, investing in products like GAAM Fire Defender means a portable, easy to use, firefighting solution for homes is always on hand, perfect for tackling small fires and protecting your property during bushfires.

Stay up-to-date and connected

In an emergency, accessing localised and accurate information from a range of communication channels is key, with reliable sources including the Fires Near Me Australia app, emergency services websites, community social media pages, and local ABC radio stations.

State and territory fire agency websites include:

ABC Radio provides regular updates during emergencies, including bushfires, around the country. To discover up-to-date information during an emergency:

  1. Download the ABC listen app so you can listen to your local ABC Radio station wherever you are. If you “favourite” your local station, it’ll make it quicker to listen in an emergency.
  2. Visit reception.abc.net.au to find your local radio frequency. Write it down — e.g. ABC Pilbara 603 AM — and stick it to the battery-powered radio in your emergency survival kit or tune the frequency to one of your car radio preset stations.
  3. Stream any ABC station from around Australia online. For those looking out for friends and relatives in an emergency, you can hear the latest warnings for their location by listening to the ABC radio station where they live.

Take action with GAAM

GAAM Emergency Products is a national provider of specialised equipment to emergency services and other industries operating in demanding environments. Since 1933, Australian firefighters and other emergency responders have relied on GAAM equipment to safely go about their daily operations. If you’re in a bushfire-prone area, don’t wait for an emergency to realise the importance of reliable firefighting equipment. Remember, the best defence is a proactive one. For a bushfire safety checklist, visit www.gaam.com.au/bushfiresafety