Emergency Risk Management Study
Emergency Risk Management Study (455.17kB)
The Local Emergency Management Committee is responsible for undertaking the emergency risk management process to identify and analyse local hazards and to use this to inform and review the local DISPLAN.
The study includes information about the history of major hazards, bushfires, floods and storms, the Emergency Management Process; description of the Shire including location, environmental scan, catchments, growth, geology, vegetation communities, climate, demographics and environmental; hazards identification and analysis including history of major hazards and vulnerable communities; Local Emergency Management Committee (LEMC); Recovery; Monitoring & Review; Actions.
Top Three Risks for The Hills Shire - Main Hazards Identified
Vulnerable Communities
The broader community is always susceptible to natural and man-made disasters however there are a range of smaller communities which are particularly vulnerable during times of emergency and includes:-
- Aged Care Facilities (nursing homes/day care facilities)
- Hospitals
- Education Facilities
- Relative Remoteness
- Areas of high exposure to potential hazardous events
- Halfway Houses
- Developmentally Delayed Housing
- Bushland Areas
- River Fringes
- Industrial Areas
- Commercial Centres
- Places of Mass Gathering
- Major Tourist Attractions
The degree of vulnerability is also conditioned by the degree of difficulty in carrying out evacuations and the capacity for evacuees to be provided for.
Additionally the Unanticipated Exposure to Randomly Occurring Severe Hazards category of events needs to be addressed.
This category recognises that some hazardous events have as one of their defining characteristics “random locational occurrence”. These events may affect any part of the community unfortunate enough to be in the vicinity. This vulnerable group is non specific as such hazards can occur anywhere, at any time and be localised or widespread.
Examples of such hazards include – earthquake, severe wind, storm (hail), terrorist attack and air crash.
The vulnerability to the direct impact by physical processes or entrapment because of inoperable egress routes is a determining factor in the degree of vulnerability of the subject group.
It is considered that there is no part of the area most exposed to gales than in the area generally.
The same applies to high wind shear in storm cells, which can occur anywhere, and to the area subject to heavy hail. However, the ERM sub-committee remains open to receiving any data that may reveal some areas are exposed to higher risks from these hazards.
The “Exposure to Randomly Occurring Severe Event Impacts” situations cannot be quantified beyond awareness that any location within the study area may be affected without warning.