{"id":49038,"date":"2013-10-28T11:53:22","date_gmt":"2013-10-28T01:53:22","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/?p=49038"},"modified":"2020-09-09T17:16:24","modified_gmt":"2020-09-09T07:16:24","slug":"help-yourself-and-help-the-ses","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/southburnett.com.au\/news2\/2013\/10\/28\/help-yourself-and-help-the-ses\/","title":{"rendered":"Help Yourself (And Help The SES)"},"content":{"rendered":"

October 28, 2013<\/strong><\/p>\n

The State Emergency Service is urging residents to assist emergency volunteers by taking responsibility for their own recovery following natural disasters.<\/p>\n

Queensland Fire and Rescue Service Commissioner Lee Johnson said State Emergency Service volunteers were there to help in an emergency, but there were things residents could do to help themselves and lighten the load for volunteers.<\/p>\n

\u201cSES volunteers spend countless hours each year helping residents prepare and recover from natural disasters,\u201d Mr Johnson said.<\/p>\n

\u201cHowever, recovery and preparation is a community responsibility. SES volunteers are there to assist those who cannot help themselves, and respond to emergencies where it would be unsafe for a resident to take action.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are plenty of things you can do before, during and after a disaster to become more resilient and recover quickly, such as having a kit ready in case you lose power or making sure there is no debris in a yard that could become dangerous during a storm.<\/p>\n

\u201cIf you do a little, we all accomplish a lot.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mr Johnson said residents should call 13-25-00 if they needed assistance from the SES, but should prepare to be more self-reliant.<\/p>\n

\u201cDuring a natural disaster the SES get hundreds of calls for assistance, some of which include situations which are dangerous for residents,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously these tasks take priority over more minor issues like leaking roofs.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt may take SES volunteers between 24-48 hours to attend to a task if they have received a large amount of jobs or those jobs are of a higher priority.\u201d<\/p>\n

Mr Johnson said residents should call 13-25-00 for emergency assistance from the SES during floods or storms, but dial Triple Zero if the situation was life threatening.<\/p>\n