The Sunshine Coast will have its finger on the pulse in managing emergencies engulfing the region in future with the announcement of a $561,000 Federal Government grant.
Sunshine Coast Council will receive an extra $561,000 in bushfire recovery funding from the Federal Government to support the delivery of an emergency management and evacuation call system at the Nambour Showgrounds, which is used as a major evacuation centre during emergencies.
In making the announcement in the showgrounds’ Main Pavilion, Federal Member for Fairfax Ted O’Brien said the funding would ensure the region was “disaster ready”.
Help keep independent and fair Sunshine Coast news coming by subscribing to our free daily news feed. All it requires is your name and email. See SUBSCRIBE at the top of this article.
“Only two years ago, wildfires engulfed a number of local communities and people were evacuated from their homes to take shelter at locations across the Sunshine Coast, including the Nambour showgrounds,” Mr O’Brien said.
“On top of the $2.8 million already provided to Sunshine Coast bushfire recovery projects through the Federal Government’s National Bushfire Recovery Agency, this $561,000 funding boost will help make sure that we are equipped and prepared for the worst.
“This significant investment will guarantee the effective and direct communication to several hundred evacuees, as well as agency staff managing this major evacuation centre which is spread across a 14.52ha site.”
Sunshine Coast Mayor Mark Jamieson welcomed the federal funding on top of the $50,000 council contribution from the Nambour Showgrounds Development Levy fund.
“This grant will be used directly to support the purchase and installation of an emergency management communication system at the Nambour Showgrounds – a critical evacuation and support hub for many people during times of crisis,” Mayor Jamieson said.
“While we hope to never see the likes of the Peregian Springs bushfires in our community again, council and our emergency services partners are well-prepared to deal with natural disasters now and in the future.
“This public announcement system upgrade will also be particularly useful for many events held at the Nambour Showgrounds each year including the Queensland Garden Expo, the annual Sunshine Coast Agricultural show, caravan and camping expos and a host of community and sporting events.”
The communication system will enable key personnel such as council and emergency services to provide critical information to people under community evacuation orders and allow for the safe co-ordination of evacuation centre operations.
The project will enable vital communications of essential activities for management of large numbers of people across several buildings and facilities.
Activities would include meal management, disaster-event updates, announcing key activities, available support services and on-site arrangements, as well as increasing safety and security for all evacuees and staff.
The $2.2 billion National Bushfire Recovery Fund is backing projects which support the ongoing recovery of bushfire-impacted communities nation-wide.
