Fire Safety
It is your responsibility to prepare yourself, your family and your home for the threat of bush fire. You need to make the decision to either leave early or stay and defend a well prepared property.
Regardless of your decision you must prepare your property to give yourself and your home the best chance of survival. By understanding your own level of risk you will be better able to make the right decision for you and your family.
The Bush Fire Household Assessment Tool and the Bush Fire Survival Plan will provide you with the information you need to make informed decisions and the appropriate preparations.
To help rural landholders prepare for and prevent bush fires, the RFS has developed Farm FireWise.
FireWise is a philosophy used by the RFS to engage the community about fire and fire safety.
The FireWise program is coordinated by specifically trained RFS members. Information and advice is available on bush fire behaviour, personal safety and identifying potential hazards and the different ways of treating them.
FireWise activities are about increasing awareness, affecting attitudes and changing behaviour, and include:
- Farm Firewise
- Community FireWise groups
- Individual property assessments
- Street Meeting and Street Walks
- Static Water Supply (SWS)
- Community meetings
- Kids FireWise
The RFS has an extensive range of printed and downloadable Fire Safety publications available, including student and teacher resources covering pre-school, primary (K to Year 6) and secondary (Year 7 to Year 12).
RFS brigades and volunteers regularly participate in community events to promote fire safety to the wider community.
If at any time you see an uncontrolled fire in the open ring 000 (Triple Zero)
Arson... it's a CRIME committed by CRIMINALS!
You can reduce your own risk and the risk of others around you by helping us fight arson.
Fact
Many of the bush and grass fires in NSW are most likely caused by human ignition. Whilst not all of these are the rest of arson, deliberately lit bush fires cost the community millions of dollars each year and have the potential to destroy property, cause injury and even kill people.
How Can You Help?
- Ensure your property is kept clean and tidy and free from 'easy' targets like piles of flamable debris or abandoned vehicles.
- Lower levels of available fuel not only reduces the potential for opportunistic fire lighters, but also greatly reduces the size of any potential fire which, in turn, reduces the 'reward' that arsonists often seek from lighting a fire.
- Ensure your family and friends are well aware of both the dangers and consequences to themselves and others of inaapropriate fire lighting.
- Be aware of any unusual increase in the frequency of fires in your area.
and if a fire does affect your neighbourhood try to:
- Note the description of any people you observed entering or leaving the fire scene prior to the fire.
- Record the registration and a description of any vehicles you observed entering or leaving the fire scene prior to the fire.
Play your part, report suspicious activity to CRIME STOPPERS on 1800 333 000 or www.crimestoppers.com.au
The NSW Rural Fire Service is committed to the reduction of deliberately-lit fires and works closely with NSW Police Force and NSW Fire Brigades.
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