Disaster assistance for SEQ councils preparing for TC Alfred

Disaster assistance has been activated for south-east Queensland councils as communities prepare for Tropical Cyclone Alfred to make landfall.

Local, state and federal governments have worked tirelessly over the past week readying for the impacts of what will be the first cyclone to directly hit the south-east for more than 50 years.

Precautionary disaster resilience efforts are ongoing, including sandbagging operations, yard and house debris removal, standing up evacuations centres, with community safety the top priority.

Funding for councils has been made available under the joint Commonwealth-state Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements (DRFA) and will cover local government expenses relating to counter disaster operations, emergency road repairs, and the reconstruction of essential public assets.

Activated councils include Brisbane, Fraser Coast, Gold Coast, Gympie, Ipswich, Logan, Moreton Bay, Noosa, Redland, Scenic Rim, Somerset, and Sunshine Coast.

The Queensland Reconstruction Authority stands ready to extend all support required to affected SEQ communities.

Queenslanders are also being asked to do as much disaster preparation around their homes as they can, and to think about items they may need if they lose power or are isolated for a period of time.

Guidance on getting prepared for cyclones and storm surges can be found at www.getready.qld.gov.au.

People are encouraged to follow the 3 Steps to Get Ready:

• Know your risk
• Make a plan
• Pack an emergency kit

The Get Ready Queensland website has an emergency kit checklist to make the process easier: www.getready.qld.gov.au/emergencykit.

People should also subscribe to weather updates from the BOM Weather app, and their local council via the relevant council disaster dashboard: www.getready.qld.gov.au/find-your-local-council.