Safe Haven Shelters

Family bushfire drill details will depend on how many people will be available, , the size of the property,, number of outbuilding and design of house. Allot a duty or number of duties to each person and appoint an overall controller, and devise your drill from the checklist at the end of this book. Here are some of the duties you will need to plan:

• Informing the local fire authority that fire has been seen
• Wearing protective clothing
• Evacuating the frail, if this is what they wish
• Closing windows and shutters and putting draught stoppers at the doors. Getting out hoses and buckets
• Filling these and other water containers inside and outside the house. Clearing the gutters of leaves
• Stopping the downpipes and filling the gutters with water. Raking the ground
• Bringing ladders to the roof and roof void manhole
• Mustering stock and bringing pets to the safe areas. Activating roof sprinklers if you have them
• Bringing cars or tractors to a clear area or putting them in a safely enclosed building
• Taking down curtains
• Caring for the children and elderly
• Guiding fire units through the property
• Appointing one person to be in charge of checking that everyone has on their protective clothing

• A strong construction of low flammability materials
• Concrete floor, or timber floors insulated as described earlier in this chapter
• An outer door that leads to a non-flammable, cleared area which has radiant-heat screens
• Inner and outer doors either of solid-core timber or insulated and reinforced with a layer of heavy cement sheeting between the two timber layers to eliminate air space, and weatherstipped
• Ceiling of concrete, or timber ceiling joists lined above and below with double-layered ‘fire-stop’ plasterboard with 100m mm-square mesh reinforcing attached to joists as a protection from falling material
• An inspection trapdoor in the ceiling
• Roof secured with cyclone clips
• A small window, reinforced with wire mesh and/or fitted with a shutter which can be operated from the inside
• A means of viewing the progress of the fire-either a window or spy-glass in the door
• A water supply, preferably a permanent reserve water supply with hose permanently attached to a reserve tap
• Ventilation that does not allow sparks or smoke to enter