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FRE
January 15, 2013
Your independent local newspaper
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Issue 49
Ph: 4325 7369
Pre-emptive emergency declared in Gosford LGA he NSW Rural Fire Service undertook a number of strategies on the Central Coast over the weekend of January 12 and 13 in preparation for expected heat wave conditions.
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In preparation for the expected conditions a preemptive emergency, under section 44 of the Rural Fires Act, was declared for the Gosford Local Government area. The emergency declaration provided the incident management team with the ability to coordinate interagency resources and have access to support agency resources and funding if it was required. An Incident Management Team (IMT) was established at the Fire Control Centre at Kariong, representing the various coordination agencies. IMT’s are generally set up once an incident develops to
The strike team and catering personnel on standby over the weekend
a significant or major level. In this case, the weather conditions and fire activity across the State resulted in a pre-emptive IMT being established.
In addition, a Rural Fire Service strike team consisting of five heavy tankers and crew remained on standby at the Fire Control Centre for quick response.
Fire and Rescue NSW also had a Strike positioned on the Central Coast. These were in addition to the normal availability of fire crews.
Support crews, including communications personnel, catering, bulk water and aviation specialists were also placed on standby and assisted behind the scenes
to bolster the fire fighting capabilities. Fire spotting air craft was also deployed across the region in addition to the local trail bike squad doing their regular patrols. “The preparation and readiness of the fire fighters and support personnel ensured there was an immediate response capability to incidents on the Central Coast,” said NSW Rural Fire Service community safety officer Mr Rolf Poole. “Spot fires are likely to spread fires kilometres in front of the main fire front. “Accordingly, it is vital that fires are detected and reported as quickly as possible so that crews can respond immediately,” said Mr Poole. A similar approach was taken for the heat wave on Tuesday, January 8, with a pre-emptive emergency declared, however, the fire fighting resources were not required. Email, 14 Jan 2013 Rolf Poole, NSW Rural Fire Service
1462 homeless persons on the Coast T
he Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has, for the first time, released a detailed Census report for the Central Coast on homelessness.
“There is still a need for further refinement of these figures, however, it is of great assistance to Central Coast Charities to allow us to better forward plan,” said Coast Shelter executive officer Mr Laurie Maher. “The very nature of homelessness means it will always be difficult to obtain exact figures.
“In this Census the ABS have made a genuine attempt to collect more accurate figures which is very helpful. “They have quite properly included people staying temporarily with other house holders, couch surfers, and those living in severely crowded dwellings in the total of 1,462 homeless persons on the Central Coast.
“While we accept that there is still the possibility of underestimation, it is great to have some hard data to assist with forward planning,” Maher stated. “With the help of our volunteers, other agencies and Government funding, Coast Shelter has been able to assist increasing numbers of our fellow citizens doing it tough,”
said Mr Maher. Compared to last financial year, Coast Shelter has been able to provide accommodation to 553 homeless persons compared to 490 persons in the year before. “We were able to provide other assistance to 1,983 persons to help them retain their accommodation, find other options or at least help them cope better with their homelessness. “From our new Coast
Community Centre, Coast Shelter is able to provide numerous services including legal advice, no interest loans, meals, showers, assistance with gas and electricity bills, tenancy advice and even haircuts and podiatry checkups,” Maher stated. “With the increased cost of living, higher rents and energy costs, more and more people are having trouble meeting every day expenses. “In winter, many families are forced to choose between
heating or eating, and unfortunately at Christmas time, it is a choice between gifts or food. “As a result of the wonderful generosity of the Central Coast community, Coast Shelter distributed special food hampers and gifts to make Christmas a little more enjoyable for families doing it tough,” said Maher. Media Release, 21 Dec 2012 Heidi Blyth, Coast Shelter