Bullengarook brigade increases the resilience of its community
Last Saturday (3 May) Bullengarook Fire Brigade in partnership with Macedon Ranges Shire Council and local community groups hosted a 'Community Resilience' day.
The aim of the event was to give community members the information they needed to live safely in an extreme fire risk area. Locals listened to crucial messages about fire safety and preparation.
CFA’s Community Based Bushfire Management Program was at the core of the initiative, and the topics covered were in line with CFA's fire safety and preparation messaging.
This messaging was enhanced by the council’s resiliency agendas for communities such as Bullengarook to be self-sufficient and prepared for the first 72 hours after a natural disaster.
During the day there were several information sessions including:
- a debrief of the 2024 Bullengarook Christmas fire, by Incident Controller John Deering
- CFA community fire safety and preparation, run by CFA volunteer Nicky Haslinghouse
- bushfire resilient landscaping, run by Riddells Creek Captain and Group Community Safety Office Gill Metz AFSM
- snakes and other hazardous wildlife, run by renowned biochemist and Bullengarook local Tim Carroll
- ecological vegetation management and biodiversity, run by Roger MacRaild from Bullengarook Landcare
- a live snake show and demonstration, run by Black Snake Productions. Needless to say this was a hit with the kids.
A number of other organisations including SES, Council of Churches, the Bullengarook Rec Centre and Bullengarook Landcare, delivered their safety and support messages.
There was also a pizza and coffee van, a juke box and the rights to publicly show the children's movie Wall-E in case the event went into the night. Bullengarook Rec Centre also organised a raffle for a fire pump donated by Midland Irrigation.
It was a great day and the community has already provided some positive feedback about how informative it was and how they are looking forward to the next one.
| Submitted by |
Simon Hayward |