Blue Mountains News

It’s a celebration of the unsung Australian heroes who are literally helping save people’s lives. The program has run annually for almost two decades, with the 2018 official award ceremony taking place next week on November 8.

A Warrimoo Public School and Warrimoo Bush Fire Brigade joint project has recently been announced as a finalist in the awards program for the incredible collaboration of local children and the local fire brigade in protecting the community from fires.

Children from Warrimoo Public School – located in a high risk, bushfire prone location in the Blue Mountains, have developed a bushfire ready program that’s developing student knowledge and skills in fire safety.

The school partnered with Warrimoo Bush Fire Brigade (NSW Rural Fire Service) to equip around 160 students with bush fire safety knowledge and skills to help them respond appropriately during an emergency. The ‘Getting Bushfire Ready at Warrimoo Public School’ project promotes the school as a safe place for kids during a bush fire event due to its robust emergency management plan understood by the school community.

Through this project, the school and brigade host the annual RFS Get Ready Weekend in the school hall, increasing attendance to the event and creating a more family-friendly environment to learn about bush fire risk and preparation.

The project is already showing great results with the students displaying greater confidence in bushfire preparedness.

More about The Resilient Australia Awards:

FIRST AID PROGRAM FOR REMOTE YOUTH, EMERGENCY PLAN FOR SOCIAL HOUSING

AND INDIGENOUS FIRE EDUCATION PARTNERSHIP

AMONG NATIONAL DISASTER RESILIENCE AWARD FINALISTS

Finalists announced for 2018 Resilient Australia Awards ahead of November 8 National Ceremony

Australian communities are facing more frequent, severe disasters. In the face of fires, floods, cyclones and other natural hazards, it’s crucial that communities build resilience to better withstand their impact.

The annual Resilient Australia Awards recognise and celebrate initiatives developed by governments, businesses, community groups and schools that make Australian communities safer and more resilient. The awards also include a photography category, celebrating powerful images of resilience in action. By sharing and celebrating these resilience projects, we can all learn and equip ourselves for when disaster hits, and encourage our friends and loved ones to plan for emergency scenarios.

Among this year’s finalists are a committee that brings social housing tenants to the emergency management planning table in the wake of the Grenfell Tower tragedy; a primary school partnering with Indigenous Elders to repair the community’s relationship to fire after Black Saturday; and photographs capturing the commitment and spirit of our female firefighters.

Winners of the Resilient Australia National, School and Photography Awards will be announced at the National Ceremony in Brisbane on 8 November. The awards are hosted by the Australian Institute for Disaster Resilience and sponsored by the Australian Government in partnership with the states and territories.

2018 Resilient Australia Award Finalists

Resilient Australia National Award

• My Resilient Community (Queensland)
  Through the My Resilient Community project, emergency services and communities work together using flexible engagement strategies to build resilience to disasters. The project enhances preparedness, response and recovery in the Brisbane City and Moreton Bay Regional Council areas, and helps individuals identify the contribution they can make to community resilience.

• First Aid in Schools: Remote Indigenous Access Project (Northern Territory)
  The First Aid in Schools project supports Indigenous children in remote communities to help themselves, their families and their communities in an emergency. A health initiative of St John Ambulance, the project engages communities where access to ambulance services can be limited. St John Ambulance aim to educate every Territorian school aged student from Years 1-12 in first aid skills.

• Disaster Resilience in Social Housing (New South Wales)
  This project invites tenants living in social housing to the planning table to voice their concerns and engage with emergency services, government and community stakeholders. The project established the Redfern and Surry Hills Community Resilience Committee which adopts a bottom-up, community-led approach to resilience building. The project has the potential to be utilised across all New South Wales social housing communities.

National School Award

• Floodscapes (Tasmania)
  Through the Floodscapes project, Launceston schoolchildren produced three short films to deliver flood safety messages to their community, using footage overlaid with their own animations. The project encourages and empowers the children of Launceston to become the safety guardians and messengers for the city. The films are accessible to hearing and visually impaired people and can be readily shared through social media.

• Getting Bushfire Ready at Warrimoo Public School (New South Wales)
  Warrimoo Public School and the local Rural Fire Service brigade partnered to equip over 150 students with bushfire safety knowledge, skills and values. The project enhanced community awareness of the school as a safe place for students during a bushfire event. Together, the school and brigade host the annual RFS Get Ready Weekend, promoting preparedness and resilience throughout the community.

• Firestick Project (Victoria)
  The stress, fear and loss that followed Black Saturday had a significant impact on the Dixon Creek community and the well-being of children at the local primary school. Through the Firestick project, students learn about fire management from Indigenous Elders. The project helps both the children and wider community establish a positive relationship with fire.

National Photography Award

• Dousing the Flames (Northern Territory)
  Many rural areas of the Northern Territory are at high risk of severe fires that can spread quickly and uncontrollably. In a state that sees many residents come and go, Captain of the Virginia/Bees Creek Volunteer Fire Brigade Fleur O' Connor has been an outstanding example of passion and commitment to the cause.

• Portrait of a Lady (New South Wales)
  Emily Rawbone has over 20 years of experience and several firefighter qualifications. According to Emily it’s “no biggie” and she modestly counts herself as just another part of the Rural Fire Service volunteer firefighting crews who all strive for the same thing, to protect our communities.

• Restoring Water and Sewer After a Cyclone (Queensland)
  When Cyclone Debbie knocked out all water and sewerage services for six days, the Whitsunday Water Management and Engineering Team set up office in the Chief Operating Officer’s garage with some generators and worked 18 to 20-hour days for two weeks to restore services to the region.