OUR seniors are a very valuable part of our community here in Nambucca Valley and they live in a diverse range of circumstances.

Some live in the family home or have independently ‘downsized’, some are rural and others town-based, while others live in retirement villages, assisted living and in-home care situations.

In day to day life these choices are manageable but in a disaster, the normal routine is easily thrown out of whack or
can break down outside our control.

Some key issues may be transport, getting cut off from regular routes or no public services.

Support people such as carers, family or friends may not be able to reach you as they themselves are cut off
or impacted.

Supplies such as medicine or food could be limited.

What about your pets?

How can you be prepared for these situations?

What can you do now to try to manage the impact of a disaster?

There are plenty of resources to help take the next step beyond thinking about it.

The RFS offers a free one-off service aimed at reducing bush fire hazards on people’s properties.

The AIDER (Assist Infirm, Disabled and Elderly Residents) program is designed for aged residents and residents with disabling conditions who live on bush fire prone land and have limited domestic support available from family, relatives, friends or other services.

If you would like to know more about this free one-off service, call 02 8741 4955 or email aider@rfs.nsw.gov.au.

Fire and Rescue offers Home Safety Visits which are for everyone and can be organised by contacting your local fire station.

If you want to know more and find out how you can be better prepared for a disaster, visit Council’s Get Ready Nambucca Valley webpage with links to useful tools, including for business and community services.

Now is the time to Get Ready Nambucca Valley, and you, our esteemed and indispensable seniors, are a vital part of that.

Visit https://nambucca.nsw.gov.au/ for more information.