What to do if there's a bushfire in your area

Fires can start quickly, threatening homes and lives within minutes. Don't wait for a warning to follow your bushfire survival plan. Your safest option is always to leave early. 

What you should do

• Keep an eye on conditions outside. You may become aware of a fire before the emergency services.
• Follow your plan. If you don't have a plan in place, leave early. Always tell family and friends what you're doing.
• Wear protective clothing. Wear loose-fitting clothing made from natural fibres like wool, denim or heavy cotton and sturdy boots.
• Stay informed. Find out if there's a fire near you by checking the following sources. 
  • Find your local ABC radio frequency. Write it on your battery-powered radio and keep it tuned.
  • Bookmark your state or territory emergency services website. 
  • Make sure you understand the bushfire warning system.
  • Check the bushfire map regularly. 
  • Download relevant emergency apps and follow emergency services on social media.
  • Talk to your neighbours.
  • If you have new, first-hand, reliable information contact your local ABC Radio station by phone, SMS or on Facebook.  
  • Check your local ABC Facebook page
  • Don't rely on phones or internet for advance warnings on days of catastrophic fire danger.

How fires spread

• Ember attack. Most homes are destroyed by ember attacks. Thousands of embers can fly through the air ahead of the main fire front and start fires in gutters and around the home.
• Direct flame contact. This happens when trees, shrubs and grass close to a building catch fire and flames reach the outside of a house or building.
• Radiant heat. It's unlikely radiant heat will make a house catch fire, but it can shatter glass and allow sparks, embers and flames to get into a building.
  • Radiant heat can be deadly to people and animals. Your best protection is distance.
  • Stay cool and keep drinking water to stay hydrated 
  • If someone is affected by heat stroke move them into shade and cool them down. Call triple-0 immediately.

Seek shelter

If it's too late to leave, you may need to seek shelter as the fire front approaches. Trying to leave once it's too late can be deadly. Fire agencies say the main priority is sheltering from radiant heat.

• Seek shelter in a well-prepared home that can be actively defended, a private bunker built to regulation or at a community shelter or refuge.
• Make sure you have protective clothing on and have your survival kit with you. 
• Shelter in a room on the side of the house opposite to the approaching fire. Make sure you can see what's happening outside. 
• Make sure you have a clear exit which allows you to escape the building if it catches fire.
• Never shelter from a bushfire in a bathroom.
• If your house is on fire, move outside to burnt ground, where the fire has already passed. 
• Be aware of how conditions can change quickly.
• Try to put a solid object, like a concrete wall or building, between you and the radiant heat from the fire.
• Only shelter in a vehicle or fire bunkers as a last resort.

Leaving once a bushfire is near your home is extremely dangerous, but if you have no other option you can go to your local place of last resort — a ploughed paddock or the beach, dam or river — but DON'T shelter in water tanks.

You should plan to leave early to avoid this situation.

Defending your home

If your plan is to stay and defend your home, make your final preparations when you know a fire has started nearby or is moving in your direction.

• Protect yourself. Your first and last lines of defence are your clothes and shoes.
• Clothing needs to cover all your skin, from neck to ankles and wrists.
• Clothing must be made of natural fibres like cotton or pure wool. Nylon and polyester can melt and burn.
• Your shoes can be the difference between living and dying. They should be made of leather and have a thick sole. Don't wear sandals or runners.
• Remember to wear goggles, a face mask to help you breathe, a wide-brimmed hat and leather gloves.

How to make final preparations

• Move all cars, farm equipment, caravans and portable gas cylinders away from the house.
• Gas cylinders should be kept upright with their relief valve away from the building.
• Switch off the mains gas supply.
• Switch off air-conditioning units - they can sometimes draw embers into your house from outside. 
• Remove door mats, outdoor furniture and all other flammable items.
• Fill gutters with water and wet down around the building.
• Keep wet wool blankets near you for protection from radiant heat
• Close windows and doors and use wet towels to fill gaps under doorways.
• Patrol for embers and extinguish them.

Animals and pets

• If you're evacuating bring all the things your pets might need. 
• If you're staying, put your pets in a safe place like a toilet or laundry, and ensure they have access to plenty of water.

Large animals on your property

• If you have to leave your livestock give them a minimum of five days of food and a water source that doesn't involve mains water. 
• Do not rug horses with synthetic blankets as they may melt in extreme heat.

Driving during a bushfire

It's extremely dangerous to be in a car during a bushfire. Vehicles offer very little protection from radiant heat.

Driving might take longer than you expect during a fire, and road conditions can become dangerous.

There may be road closures, smoke, fallen trees and embers.

If you are caught in your car:

• Park behind a solid structure to block as much heat as you can.
• If no solid structure is available, pull over into a clear area away from debris that may ignite.
• Park facing towards the fire.
• Close the windows and air vents.
• Turn your headlights and hazard lights on.
• Get below the level of your windows, cover yourself with a woollen blanket. Have water in the car, and drink it.
• Stay down until the sound of the fire has passed.