Beat the heat

Published on 27 September 2023

Planning now could save lives—that’s the message residents are being urged to heed as experts predict hotter and drier conditions in spring and summer.

While the predictions—following unprecedented northern hemisphere wildfires and record-breaking heat, are alarming—City of Onkaparinga’s Senior Emergency Management Officer, Neal McDonald, says they’re a reminder to make sure you’re prepared.

“We’re entering a period of increased bushfire risk, and heatwaves cause more deaths in Australia than any other natural hazard,” Neal says.

“Thankfully there’s a lot we can do to care for ourselves and vulnerable family and friends during heatwaves, and ensure we’re bushfire ready.

“For hot weather, getting organised can mean monitoring heatwave warnings; making your home cooler through awnings, shade cloths or cooling units; and planning to avoid going out during the hottest parts of the day.

“If you don’t have air conditioning, Onkaparinga’s libraries and community centres provide safe and welcoming spaces where you can shelter.

“Stay connected by planning to check family, friends or neighbours that are at particular risk; know the signs of heat-related illness such as dehydration; and identify your support network, including those who can help you during a heatwave.”

To prepare for bushfires, advice includes creating a bushfire plan; reducing and removing vegetation from around your property; packing an emergency kit; and staying informed via multiple sources of emergency warning information.

The City of Onkaparinga has compiled a Prepare, Respond, Recover webpage, which includes a range of resources such as detailed guides from the Australian Red Cross and Country Fire Service SA (CFS).

Cherry Gardens’ Andrew Ayles (pictured with family) understands the threat of bushfires—in 2021 a fire that started next door destroyed two homes and burnt through 2700 hectares of land.

It’s a reason his family prepares well in advance of the fire danger season (typically commencing 1 December in Onkaparinga).

“When the fire really got going in Mount Bold, the ash was coming down everywhere,” Andrew recalls of the 2021 blaze.

“It’s confronting enough with the skies being filled with black smoke haze, but once it [ash] starts all falling down around you like rain, that’s when it really hit home.”

When Onkaparinga Now spoke with Andrew in late August, he was keeping his property’s grass short through livestock grazing. Jobs planned later in spring include mowing, cleaning red gum leaves from gutters and testing bushfire sprinklers.

“Preparation starts early for us," Andrew explained. "If we were to start grazing in a month’s time, you’d roll into summer with foot-and-half-high grass in the paddocks and you’d never keep up."

“We find wasps go into the little holes in the bushfire sprinklers and build their nests, so we always end up with 15 or 20 per cent of them blocked at the start of every season—if they’re not tested, they just don’t work.

“Our bushfire kits are ready… with clothing pre-prepared, down to shoes, socks, masks for all of us. We literally have a wind-up radio, which is probably a thing of the past now because we’re completely off-grid so we’re not reliant on mains electricity.

“It doesn’t need to be that extreme, but even having a maintained generator you can rely on so you can at least get basic communication is important.”

“We have a bushfire plan covering everything from where we’ll have our vehicles, to what we’ll do with livestock, and all the tasks that need to be done in order of priority and who’s doing them.

“If those people aren’t around, well, the tasks need to be done in the same order, but things just get altered or shuffled a little bit.”

Andrew says the family’s plan is to stay and defend the home in the event of a bushfire.

“We decided there’s too much danger in leaving,” he said, noting the fact theirs is the last house on a dead-end street.

“Statistically, the fact we have our house well-prepared around us, we’re still safer in our house than if we were to leave.”

Another fantastic way to prepare for bushfire season is to connect with a local community-led disaster resilience group, which bring residents together to better support each other and prepare their community for emergencies.

The groups, including in Cherry Gardens, Clarendon and Kangarilla, are supported by council thanks to a South Australian Fire and Emergency Services Commission grant.

To connect with a local group, contact council’s Community Connections Officer – Resilience on 8384 0666.

Council maintains over 1900 hectares of open space and road verges all year-round. Over the next couple of months, our tractor slashing and mowing programs will be keeping extra busy with the preparation period as the green grass begins to dry out.

MORE INFORMATION

onkapringacity.com/disaster-ready

redcross.org.au/prepare

cfs.sa.gov.au/plan-prepare

ses.sa.gov.au/heatwave