Women’s Preparedness Programs

Research has shown that when faced with the threat of a bushfire females are more likely to leave, especially where children are involved.

However when asked what actions they had taken to prepare to ‘leave early’ there has been minimal evidence of having prepared.

Further, women also were not as active in preparing their properties if they chose to ‘stay and defend’ (Fransden, 2010) putting women at a greater risk to the impacts of bushfire.

Women’s preparedness programs include group meetings and activities that cover:

• Preparing yourself and your family
• Preparing emotionally and psychologically for bushfire
• Learning about fire behaviour, radiant heat and ember attacks
• Understanding Fire Danger Ratings and Alert levels
• Developing a Bushfire Survival Plan
• Personal survival
• Working through a ‘leave early’ checklist and the development of an emergency kit
• Understanding communication processes in your local community
• Preparing your property including understanding defendable zones
• Having a ‘stay and defend’ kit including protective clothing, masks, glasses etc
• Responding to a bushfire emergency

These workshops are interactive and specific to the needs of women who live in environments at risk of bushfire.