Blue Mountains News

This free, family-friendly event combines hands-on learning with festive fun, helping residents prepare for extreme weather events, reduce environmental risks and get ready for a safe, sustainable summer.

The Expo will feature interactive workshops, family activities and demonstrations from organisations including the Australian Red Cross, Fire & Rescue NSW, the State Emergency Service (SES), and local sustainability businesses.

Visitors can enjoy a free plant-based community barbecue, live music, and a range of activities for all ages, including a free drumming workshop, a pollinator hunt and craft workshops to create plastic-free Christmas presents.

Santa will be joining the celebrations to help promote a safer and healthier Christmas and will be giving every visitor a free fire-retardant plant for their garden.

The Expo will also see the launch of the Bushfire Retrofit Toolkit, developed by the University of Technology Sydney, which guides homeowners through practical steps to prepare properties for bushfire conditions.

Visitors can explore Betty the Asbestos Education House, a mobile display home that helps residents identify where asbestos may be found in houses built before 1990 and learn how to manage it safely.

Blue Mountains Mayor Mark Greenhill said the event is a chance for the community to come together, learn practical ways to prepare for the future and have some fun.

“This expo is an excellent opportunity for our community to learn more about disaster risk, meet the people working to protect our region and take steps to prepare for future challenges,” Cr Greenhill said.

“The Planetary Health Centre is helping residents turn awareness into action, and this event shows that preparing for emergencies can also be enjoyable and empowering for the whole family.”

The Disaster Risk Awareness Expo and Family Day will run from 10am to 4pm at the Blue Mountains Planetary Health Centre, 33–39 Acacia Street, Katoomba. For more details or to register for workshops, visit here