Rural Fire Safety

"If possible, send someone out to the road to meet the emergency services when they arrive." - FF Driver Stephen Withers      

Be Fire Smart

There are a number of things that you can do to help keep you and your family fire safe in a rural environment:

• Don't light fires outside when it is dry, windy or when there is a prohibited fire season
• In summer ,when the land is dry, avoid outdoor activities that create heat or sparks.  For example, when mowing long grass do it in the early morning while there is dew on the ground, rather than in the heat of the day
• Clear a 10-30 metre safety zone around your house and outbuildings
• Keep trees and branches at least 3m from powerlines
• Keep grass short and your lawn watered where possible
• Keep your gutters and spouting clear of leaves and rubbish
• Prepare and practice and escape plan
• Clearly mark any water supplies that are available for fire-fighting
• Keep a garden hose connected.

Can We Find You?

Unfortunately it is very common for property numbers to only be displayed at your letterbox.

In this photograph you can see the problem for the emergency services when trying to find your property, which driveway do we use?

Please number your driveway too, so that we can see where the access point is.  This could save valuable minutes.

  Can We Access Your Property?

Fire Appliances are large trucks, check your driveway and make sure that we can easily drive along it to your house and any other buildings that we might need to get to.

In the event that you have an emergency, send someone out to the road if possible.  This makes sure that Fire Service vehicles go straight to the fire without delay, you can advise best access and the nature of your emergency.