Local Royal Fire Service (RFS) volunteers are coming down to Terrey Hills Tavern this Sunday between 10am – 5pm to answer your questions, share practical tips, and help locals make a plan so their homes and families are prepared this bush fire season.
This is part of RFS’ One Ember Can End It public awareness and safety campaign launch, with firefighters across NSW are urging households to spend this weekend preparing for the coming bush fire season.
The leading cause of house loss during bush fires is embers blowing ahead of the fire front and quickly igniting flammable materials like leaves and debris around a house and yard. The new RFS public awareness campaign warns that even a single ember can destroy an unprepared home more than 20 kilometres away from the fire itself.
The RFS also warns of a late onset to the fire season, with significant growth fuelled by heavy rain contributing to the risk of fast-moving grass fires and higher fuel-loads in bushland areas.
“It’s a common and dangerous misconception that you have to be surrounded by bushland to be impacted by a bush fire,” said RFS Commissioner Trent Curtin. “Our firefighters do an outstanding job in challenging conditions but we can’t have a truck at every home. If property owners take simple steps to clear up around their homes this weekend, it will help us protect them and their communities.”
Some simple steps the Northern Beaches RFS brigade has recommended ahead of this weekend’s meeting include:
- Clearing gutters
- Removing flammable debris
- Trimming back trees and shrubs
For more information, check the Northern Beaches Headquarters Rural Fire Brigade Facebook page, or visit the RFS website.
