Disaster Readiness

SES PREPARE THE COMMUNITY FOR DISASTER SEASON

Local Controller Alex McPhee and Group Leader Jo-Ann Clout of SES Mackay Group Alex and Jo-Ann lead a group of 98 volunteers in the SES Mackay Group

With disaster season upon us, the Mackay SES Group has already been engaged in jobs and activations assisting the public with sandbagging, tarping roofs and clearing fallen trees and debris. For Group Leader Jo-Ann Clout, helping people in times of disaster has been a lifelong passion since helping her parents who were involved in the SES in Bowen.

“Even before I was old enough to join, I used to go down to the Bowen shed with them in times of emergency and help with the telephone calls,” Jo-Ann said. Jo-Ann joined the Bowen SES in her own right in 1998 where she was a volunteer for 18 months before moving to Mackay and transferring to the Mackay SES group. Filling the role of Group Leader for the last 10 years, Jo-Ann is involved in the management of the day-to-day operational functions of the group, coordinating recruiting and managing occupational health and safety, ensuring everyone is competent and up to date with training. In an average disaster-free week, Jo-Ann would commit 8-10 hours to the SES, also working as a teacher with special needs children, a marriage celebrant and an art teacher, but she says it’s all worth it. “If it wasn’t a brilliant organisation with great people, I wouldn’t be here still,” she said. “I choose to keep coming back and I choose

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Contact: Alex McPhee State Emergency Service Local Controller Visit ses.qld.gov.au or call 0409 894 721

to accept the leadership role. “No one forces you to do anything, you’re a volunteer and that’s an important thing for people to remember. “As a volunteer, you give what you can when you can.” Jo-Ann’s most memorable SES activation was her first one, travelling to Rockhampton to assist with the floods in 2011. “Just seeing the devastation that the families had to deal with and helping them sometimes have to throw out a lifetime of memories, that was really hard,” she said. “To be able to help them with that process was really rewarding.” A core function of the SES is education, both throughout the community and within the organisation. They promote a level of self-sufficiency, equipping the public with knowledge and tools to be able to sandbag, tarp and assist themselves as it may take time for trained SES to reach them. “The Mackay unit is very proactive when it comes to education in the community,” said SES Local Controller Alex McPhee.

“We go to a lot of different events to, not only promote SES, but to promote disaster management in the home. “The education is getting through to people which is a really good thing because people are really wanting to know how to protect themselves and look after their family and property. “The appetite for the education is definitely here in the Mackay region.” Jo-Ann also says that she has gained a wide variety of skills, including tying knots, fourwheel-driving, as well as leadership and life skills.

“I can do more than I thought I was capable of,” she said. “You get lots of life skills that you can learn here in a safe environment taught by professional people and go out into the real world and do things for yourself,” added Alex.

JO-ANN’S DISASTER TIPS

• Be alert but not alarmed - “I know it’s easy to say, ‘Here comes another cyclone, it’s not going to hit us, it never does,’ but sometimes it comes close enough that we do need to be extra prepared, so don’t be complacent and follow the advice of the emergency services; it’s for your safety.” • Do what you can to be prepared - “Clean up your backyard, check your trees, all those kinds of things. We do have, on our community Facebook, some self-help videos, including how to make your own sandbags and sandbag your own property, so that you can be prepared and you don’t need to wait for a team to come and assist you. • Make sure your gutters are clean - “It does make a difference. You can get water in your roof and people ring the SES but if it’s a big weather event, we could have 300 other calls for assistance so whatever people can do to minimise the load on our volunteers is greatly appreciated.” • Prepare an evacuation kit - “We always advise that you be prepared for 72 hours, so think about if you were going away for three days, what would you need? What would you take?”