Ahead of storm season, Sunshine Coast residents and business owners are urged to have an emergency plan in place, pack their emergency and evacuation kits and make sure their insurance has adequate coverage and is up to date.
Those three simple steps will ensure households and businesses are prepared for extreme events.
And while our community is called to get ready, the Local Disaster Management Group (LDMG), made up representatives from Council, local emergency services, key non-government departments, local education institutes, energy and water service providers and tourism organisations, is also preparing.
A digital tool which tracks and shares real-time data during disasters has been put through its paces during an LDMG flood event training exercise.
LDMG Chair and Sunshine Coast Council Mayor Mark Jamieson said it may have only been a few months ago the region experienced a real-life flood disaster during February and March, however ongoing training through exercises such as that held on Wednesday (August 3), provided the opportunity to put into practise the improved processes and learnings.
“The exercise included a fast-forming weather event, more than 100mm of rain, flash flooding, hail and storm surge, severe storms, super cells and tornadoes, so it tested the disaster management skills of all agencies,” Mayor Jamieson said.
“The last few years have taught us that such an event is not beyond the realms of possibility.
“It was a perfect training scenario for such a catastrophic event while also using Guardian IMS which allows agencies to collaborate thanks to the state-of-the-art incident management solution.
“Guardian is a valuable ally when responding to a disaster, so we’re excited to learn more about its capabilities which will be implemented into our disaster response moving forward.
“The LDMG is an efficient and organised team, and we always welcome opportunities to discuss and further refine our disaster management procedures, plans and partnerships,” he said.
“Disasters are a critical time for our community so it’s vital that the skills of the LDMG are well maintained so we can best support and protect the Sunshine Coast during all aspects of a disaster, from preparedness to response and recovery.”
Visit council’s to find the latest updates, practical resources and what to do before, during and after an emergency.
