Get your comms kit ready for bush fire season

With the 2023/24 fire season already upon us, Illawarra residents in bushfire-prone areas are being encouraged to put a battery-powered radio in their emergency survival kit before it’s too late.

In the event of a bush fire, mobile phones and any smart devices that rely on telecoms towers may be rendered useless. During the 2019/20 bushfire crisis, more than 1300 mobile network towers and other facilities were reportedly knocked out.

The official RFS advice is: “During a bush fire, you could lose power and telecommunications. Do not rely on just one source of information.”

In a worst-case scenario there may be no TV, no phone, no Facebook, and it will be too late to try to buy a battery-powered radio then.

Group Captain of Illawarra/Sutherland, NSW RFS, Craig Robertson AFSM (Australian Fire Service Medal, 2015) said residents should have a portable battery-operated radio and plenty of spare batteries as part of their emergency survival kit. Find the full details of what to pack here.

By using a radio that’s not reliant on electricity or a mobile network tower, you’ll be able to stay up to date with bushfire alerts, no matter what happens to telecoms or internet infrastructure.

Illawarra residents should have their emergency radio tuned to ABC Illawarra (97.3 MHz FM).

If you reside in a mobile phone blackspot – i.e. an area in which mobile phone coverage is limited and unreliable – a battery-powered radio takes on even more importance because it will ensure you will have reliable access to bushfire news and alerts relevant to your area.

The NSW RFS advises that leaving early is the safest option for the elderly or those with disabilities, because those people are at a higher risk of danger in a bushfire.

In terms of bushfire preparation, the RFS does offer a free, one-off service called AIDER (Assist Infirm, Disabled and Elderly Residents), which supports at-risk community members.

“The AIDER program is designed for people who have limited domestic support available from family, relatives, friends or other services. This could include older people, people living with a disability, and people who are already receiving community assistance and services,” the RFS states. “Their property must also be on bush fire prone land (land that can support a bush fire or be subject to bush fire attack).”

AIDER services can include clearing gutters, thinning vegetation around the home, removing leaf and tree debris, trimming branches from close to the home and mowing or slashing long grass.

Fore more details on the AIDER service, call 02 8741 4955, email aider@rfs.nsw.gov.au or download the RFS fact sheet from the website.

The RFS also has fact sheets to download in a range of languages, including Arabic, French, Hindi and Vietnamese, available here.

And finally, don't forget to download the new Hazards Near Me NSW smartphone app. This free application replaces Fires Near Me NSW.