Tags: Bribie Island Emergency Services
When disaster strikes, either by natural or man-made means, it is what happens immediately after the initial event that sets the scene for the effectiveness of any response. Bribie Islanders have been blessed that we have not had to deal with that many major incidents over the years.
Those that we have had, such as the bush fires and brush with cyclone OMA earlier this year were dealt with very effectively by our emergency services teams on the ground, in the air and on the water. The Bribie Islander recently caught up with another milestone in the protection of our beautiful island and the surrounding region with the local sign off by each emergency services person responsible for working together on any future combined emergency response that affects our region.
The occasion that brought all the key players together was the signing of the recently reviewed and updated Bribie Island Emergency Services Multi-Agency Response Plan. This is the critical planning document that underpins any coordinated emergency response to an incident that happens on the island where more than one emergency service is required. Queensland Fire and Emergency Services Station Officer Bribie Island Wayne Brown said that the document is a practical working guide that has been reviewed and updated to ensure the correct resources are employed in any given emergency across a number of different emergency service areas.
The Bribie Island Emergency Services Multi-Agency Response Plan document has been signed off by members of the Bribie Island Emergency Management Group. The attending group was comprised of Queensland Fire and Emergency Services Station Officer Bribie Island Wayne Brown, Queensland Police Service Officer In Charge Bribie Island Senior Sergeant Lyndal Wiggins, Queensland Ambulance Service Officer In Charge Bribie Island Jarred Thorne, Qld Parks & Wildlife Services Officer In Charge Bribie Island Brendan McLarty and Cheryn Kelly, VMRBI Vice Commodore Ces Luscombe VMRBI Secretary Gary Voss.
Given the often challenging nature of responding to emergencies in the off-road area, (around 86 percent of the island is made up of environmental and national marine parks) the BIEMG meets regularly and conducts exercises to prepare for real-life emergencies should they occur. Wayne said that later in the year it is planned that all agencies will join together during an exercise to simulate a disaster situation. The exercise will allow the group to utilise their specific skills to respond, practice and refine their disaster training recovery techniques.
Wayne said that these exercises are very important to ensure that our local emergency services agencies are well prepared to respond to incidents in the Bribie Island area. Bribie residents and business owners should take comfort in our local emergency services preparedness to respond to any disaster that comes our way.