Emergency Management

Christmas Day Floods

Please call 9490 4222 during business hours if you have been impacted by the Christmas day floods and require support from council.

A customer service officer will discuss your needs and provide advice about where council is able to assist.

Hard rubbish collections to remove flood damaged items can be arranged as part of your normal allocation for 2012. It is important however that you contact your insurer about the assessment process and any evidence, information, costs relating to flood damage that they may require first.

Requests for material and financial aid are being coordinated by council in conjunction with the Salvation Army and the Department of Human Services for residents whose homes are not habitable.

If you have pets that you are unable to accommodate during this time, council is working closely with the RSPCA to provide temporary accommodation.

Safety Information 

  • Check your home or building for damage before you re-enter.  
  • If your home has been flooded or damaged, all electrical and gas appliances should be checked by a licensed technician before you use them.
  • With high temperatures expected over the New Year weekend, residents impacted by severe storm, hail or flood damage are encouraged to have air conditioning system checked before use. Water and damage to air conditioners can cause malfunction, electric shocks and possible fires.
  • Property damage may affect air conditioning for vulnerable persons with the forecast hot weather.
  • Dry out and clean buildings straight away - hot weather expected over the New Year weekend, may cause further deterioration of flood damaged goods and floor coverings.
  • Working at heights is a high-risk activity. Residents need to take particular care and safety precautions if gaining access to roofs or heights to undertake maintenance.
  • When cleaning up, wear strong boots, gloves and protective clothing, and wash your hands and clothes regularly as floodwater contains contaminants.
  • Floodwaters are dangerous and toxic - never drive, walk or ride through floodwaters.

Health and Wellbeing Information

Register with the Department of Human Services (DHS) if you can not live in your home. Assistance may be available: http://www.dhs.vic.gov.au/

Counselling and support is available from the following organisations:

Lifeline

http://www.lifeline.org.au/

phone 13 11 14

Beyond Blue

http://www.beyondblue.org.au/

phone 1300 224 636

Kids Helpline

http://www.kidshelp.com.au/

phone 1800 551 800

SANE Australia

http://www.sane.org/

phone 1800 187 263

Emergency Contacts 

  • For flood or storm emergency assistance from the SES call 132 500. 
  • For life threatening emergencies call 000. 

Additional Information

 

Road Closures:

http://www.vicroads.vic.gov.au/

phone 131 170

Weather Warnings and Information:

http://www.bom.gov.au/

phone 1300 659 217

SES Information:

http://www.ses.vic.gov.au/

phone 1300 842 737

Recovery Information (Farm and Rural):

http://www.dpi.vic.gov.au/

phone 136 186

 

For Emergency Assistance

Fire, Police, Ambulance - 000

State Emergency Service - 132 500

Poisons Information Line - 13 11 26

Everyone should understand which organisation to contact in the event of an emergency, when it is appropriate to use the 000 (triple zero) emergency response number and what to expect when it is called.

Visit www.safety.vic.gov.au  for further information about:

  • Calling 000 for police, fire and ambulance in an emergency
  • Contact number list
  • Contact numbers for Victoria (Australia)

Municipal Emergency Management Planning

Municipal Emergency Management Plan (MEMPlan) 

Emergencies can affect any community at anytime causing injury, death, and property and environment damage.  To cope with such events Council have worked closely with Victoria State Emergency Service, Victoria Police, Metropolitan Fire Brigade, Country Fire Authority and the Department of Human Services to develop our MEMPlan. The Emergency Management Act 1986 requires Council to establish a Municipal Emergency Management Planning Committee (MEMPC) whose task it is to develop a Municipal Emergency Management Plan (MEMPlan) for the community.Our MEMPlan outlines how we will prevent, respond to and recover from emergencies within the municipality.  You can download a copy of the MEMPlan below.

Community Emergency Risk Management (CERM)

A big part of emergency planning is identifying and assessing risks so action can be taken to avoid them, minimise them and deal with them if they happen.With this in mind, Council has developed a Community Emergency Risk Management (CERM) plan. CERM is a process which aims to reduce risks within our community. Risks identified in Banyule’s CERM include common hazards such as fire in the natural or built environment, flooding, storm damage and road incidents as well as potential hazards such as water contamination.   You can download a copy of the CERM below.

What Council Does to Prevent and Prepare for an Emergency

  • Prepare and review the MEMPlan, the Municipal Fire Prevention Plan and all associated sub-plans including the Recovery Plan, Public Health Emergency Management Plan, Heatwave Plan and the Pandemic Plan and Guidelines
  • Preparation of a Municipal Neighbourhood Safe Places Plan
  • Inspect private property for fire prevention
  • Fire preparation in council reserves
  • Community education

What Council Does in an Emergency

Depending on the nature of the emergency we may:

  • Provide assistance during response and recovery (eg road clearing, animal services, tree clearing etc)
  • If there is a major emergency in Banyule or surrounding areas we may open a relief centre in a council building or public hall. There will be a range of services to help people affected by the emergency. This may include assistance with food and clothing, accommodation, support services and access to grants and financial aid
  • Activate the Municipal Emergency Control Centre (MECC) - The MECC provides logistical support to all agencies responding to the emergency.  Depending on the emergency, the MECC may operate 24 hours  day and a representative from each agency involved will be in attendance (eg Police, Fire Services, Department of Human Services, Australian Red Cross etc)
  • Provide ongoing recovery activities in conjunction with other government agencies

Heatwave and Public Health

Heatwaves can affect anybody and cause illnesses such as heat cramps, heat exhaustion and heat sroke which can be fatal.  Pregnant women, breast feeding mothers, babies and young children are particulatly senstivite to heat and need extra care in very hot weather. 

More information regarding heatwave and public heath, is located under Services for You.

Fire Prevention and Integrated Fire Management Planning

More information on fire prevention can be found under Services for You.

Neighbourhood Safer Places (NSP's)

NSP's are not community fire refuges or emergency relief centres.  NSP's are places of last resort during the passage of a bushfire, and are intended to be used by persons whose primary bushfire plans have failed.  NSP's are places of relative safety only.  They do not guarantee the survival of those who assemble there.  Furthermore they may be serious risks to safety encountered in travelling, and seeking access to NSP's during bushfire events.  Depending on the direction of a particular fire, it may not be a safer place to assemble than other places withing the municipal district.  

Banyule have not nominated any NSP's within our municipality, we do however have a Municipal Neighbourhood Safer Places Plan (MNSPP).  You can download the MNSPP below.

Adobe Acrobat Reader is required to view PDF documents. Click here to download the reader.

Emergency Planning - Everyone's Responsibility

Every family or household should have an emergency plan.  There are many resources available to assist each household plan for emergencies.  Get all members in your household involved in the planning and make sure that you consider your personal circumstances and needs.  There are many resources available to assist each household plan for emergencies.  Visit www.ses.vic.gov.au AND www.cfa.vic.gov.au AND www.redcross.org.au The Australian Red Cross have developed Emergency REDiPlan, which outlines four simple steps to prepare your household for an emergency.The four steps are:

  1. Be informed
  2. Make a plan
  3. Get an emergency kit.
  4. Know your neighbours.

Through Emergency REDiPlan, Red Cross provides resources to help people be better prepared in case of an emergency.  Being prepared, knowing what to do and how to seek help is vital and will help you cope better if an emergency occurs. Emergency REDiPlan is published in accessible formats including support booklets in Easy English and for people with a disability, their families and carers.  Other guides in the range include information and practical activities for households, children and seniors.Audio files covering Red Cross preparedness and recovery materials and large text print formats are also available to assist people with vision impairment. 

For further information call Australian Red Cross on 03 8327 7700 or visit www.redcross.org.au