This is the week to prepare for an emergency

A few simple steps can help reduce the distress, explains Howard Colvin

FOR many of us it’s unthinkable. Until it happens, and then it’s too late.

We all face emergencies: as large as a bushfire or as personal as a medical crisis.

They can all be devastating, as so many people found out last year in the fires and floods across much of Tasmania.

In Disaster Preparedness Week, which runs until Sunday, Australian Red Cross is asking you to take one easy action to make your next emergency less stressful.

In Tasmania we don’t get the big disasters you often see in the mainland states.

We can get anything, anytime, anywhere.

We’ve had three major fire events in the last decade (2006 East Coast, 2013 Dunalley and 2016 in Central Tasmania).

Then last year we had the worst floods in almost 90 years.

As to the summer ahead?

The Tasmania Fire Service has been warning people of higher fire risk this season with above-normal fire potential on the East Coast, the Derwent Valley and the SouthEast corner.

So there’s never been a better time to take action to save money and heartache. The more prepared you are for emergencies, the less stressful they become.

You’re more likely to have a sense of control during the emergency and afterwards.

Red Cross has been responding to emergencies and providing humanitarian assistance in Australia since 1914.

And this week we’re urging all Australians to take simple and practical steps to protect the people you love, your own wellbeing and the things you value most.

Despite the fact that disasters will affect one in three of us, many people don’t think it will happen to them.

The reasons? Our research shows it’s everything from the way we see risk, overconfidence in our abilities, or assuming that insurance will be sufficient, to thinking that it’s all too hard.

But preparing for an emergency can be simple.

Easy things to help you prepare for any emergency include: START a conversation with your family and neighbours, so in an emergency you can better help each other and recover faster. Connected communities recover quicker and better. FILL out your RediPlan at www.redcross.org.au/prepare. It’s Red Cross’s free guide to getting prepared. GET packing. Build an emergency kit and identify those precious things that are impossible to replace, so you take them with you if you evacuate. PREPARE your mind. Emergencies can put you under a lot of pressure. The more prepared you are for emergencies, the less stressful they become and you’re more likely to have a sense of control.

Australian Red Cross runs Disaster Preparedness Week urging Australians to do one simple thing to prepare for a disaster. Take one step to prepare yourself, your family and home for an emergency.

Red Cross’s role is to reduce the human impact of emergencies, from disasters including bushfires or floods to household accidents.

Red Cross helps people prepare themselves and their families both physically and mentally. We help them make the actions and connections they need to survive and bounce back. When an emergency happens we help people access the resources, support and information they need. Then during the long road afterwards we help communities to understand the social and emotional impacts, and support them as they work together on the road to recovery.

Emergencies can be dangerous and cost us more than we expect. Prepare to survive; prepare to recover.

All Tasmanians are also urged to visit the Tasmanian Government emergency info web page: www.alert.tas.gov.au