Preparing
your community
for disasters
& emergencies

Northern & Yorke Regions of SA

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Planning & Preparing for disasters

Your community is your most important asset for practical assistance and emotional support.

When a disaster hits, the first people on the scene are likely to be your neighbours and others from your community. Emergency services can’t be everywhere and even if they do arrive, their priority is saving lives and property. We need to be ready to look after ourselves.

Established communities know how to swing into gear, but even long-standing communities have new residents who don’t know how things work, or fewer people to help, or have been lucky enough to escape disaster for a long time.

“I moved here during COVID and have made a few friends, but in an emergency? I’d have no idea, ring 000 I guess and hope for the best.”

One of the aims of this Toolkit is to help communities take a fresh look at their residents, resources and emergency services so that they’re not relying on old habits that might not work.

National Strategy for Disaster Resilience

Disaster resilient communities:

  • Function well under stress
  • Can adapt quickly and successfully
  • Are self-reliant
  • Have strong social bonds and can work together to self-organise 

A couple of hours of planning can make all the difference

  1. Who to invite to a planning session (it’s great if council and CFS, SES and other emergency services are involved)
  2. Being realistic about what you can achieve – quick wins are better than no wins.
  3. How will you prioritise the actions? Great results from minimal effort is the go!
  4. How will your group check that things are getting done?
  5. How will you keep the rest of the community informed?
Use scenarios to explore different ideas and reduce distress for people who have experienced disasters.

Understanding emergency warnings

🟢

Advice:

Stay informed

🟠

Watch and Act:

Be prepared and take action.

🔴

Emergency Warning:

Act immediately.

Yorke Peninsula

Coastal communities, agricultural land and areas of native vegetation face a mix of fire, severe weather and coastal hazards. Council emergency planning identifies bushfire, flooding, storms, coastal issues and earthquakes as relevant hazards. yorke.sa.gov.au

Risk / hazard What it could mean for your community
Bushfire and grassfire Fires can spread rapidly through dry crops, grass and bushland, threatening homes, farms, townships and roads.
Extreme heat and heatwaves Extended hot weather can affect people, animals and essential services, particularly when power is interrupted.
Severe storms and damaging winds Strong winds, lightning, hail and heavy rain can damage buildings, bring down trees and interrupt electricity.
Coastal flooding and storm surge High tides combined with storms can inundate low-lying coastal land, roads and properties.
Localised flash flooding Intense rainfall can overwhelm drainage and flood low-lying roads and properties.
Earthquakes Earthquakes can occur and should be considered in community preparedness.

These hazards are supported by council emergency planning, regional bushfire planning and SES guidance on heat, storms and flooding. yorke.sa.gov.au

Planning resources for entire community

INdividuals & HOuseholds
Businesses
Communities
Educators
Grants

Resources for Individuals & Households

Resources for Businesses

Resources for Communities

Resources for Educators

Current funding and grants

last checked october 2026