WHEN THE BUSHFIRE
EMERGENCY MESSAGE IS
“It Is Too Late To Leave, You Should Take Shelter And Stay
Indoors”
WHAT SHOULD YOU ACTUALLY DO?
IF YOU CANNOT SHELTER IN A BUILDING
* Shelter behind a wall, beside a large bare-ground, fire resistant tree; in nor beside a car; in a dam (if no vegetation is near either) or crouch beneath a pure wool blanket on a bare or already burnt area.
IF YOU CAN SHELTER IN A BUILDING
BEFORE YOU GO INSIDE:
* Shut off gas and electricity at the mains.
* Put pets inside: dogs on leash, cats in covered cages.
* Take in outdoor furniture, doormats, hanging baskets, plastic pot plants.
* Shut off gas and electricity at the mains.
* Put pets inside: dogs on leash, cats in covered cages.
* Take in outdoor furniture, doormats, hanging baskets, plastic pot plants.
WHEN YOU ARE INSIDE:
* Make sure all doors and windows are securely shut.
* Turn off air conditioners; cover their internal vents.
* If windows are unshuttered, cover with pure wool blankets, heavy quality quilts, foil or wet towels. Move flammable furniture away from windows. (See Post December 1 What Renters Can Do, for ideas for emergency shutters.)
Wear protective clothing, nose mask, drink often, have pure wool blankets handy and cool off when possible
* Watch the conditions outside through a small window or peephole. When flaring shrubs have blackened it’s safe to go out again. Burning tree trunks do not generally emit killing radiant heat.
PASSIVE SHELTERERS* Close internal doors to limit fire spread if embers enter and ignite inside.
* Stay by an exit door, in protective clothing and with blanket.
* Do not shelter in an inner room. Not in the hallway. Not in the bath. If you shelter in ANY kind of inner room – no matter how many doors it has – you could be trapped. Embers may have ignited in ceiling space, sub-floor or wall cavities. Flaming walls or ceiling could collapse on you. Or toxic fumes from smouldering cushions or wall linings could overcome you.
* It is vital for passive shelterers to exit as soon as the potentially killing radiant heat from flames has died down.
ACTIVE SHELTERERS
* Take hose, sprayers and ladder inside with you.
* Fill bath & troughs with water, immerse towels, roll up and place at door gaps and window ledges. Plug keyholes with play dough, blue-tack or soap.
* Fill containers (e.g. garden sprayers) with water; put these, with dippers, mops etc, in each room.
* Watch for invading embers. Particularly in the ceiling space, through windows, gaps under doors. Quickly spray or hit with wet mop any sparks, embers or smouldering furnishings.
* If any ignition cannot be extinguished, close the door of that room.
* Maintain easy access to an exit door.
* Never go outside during a flame front to douse an outside ignition.
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EXITING
* Exit with great care, preferably from a door that is sheltered from the wind.
* Wear protective clothing & nose cover, cover yourself with your blanket, crouch, lower your eyelids and open the door gradually.
(Extracted from my Essential Bushfire Safety Tips (CSIRO 2012), Chapter 21, 'What to do when bushfire threatens'.)
Post-2009 research by bushfire scientists revealed that although 2/3 of Black Saturday fatalities died while sheltering in or near the house, they did not die BECAUSE they were sheltering. They died because they did not know how to shelter safely.
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