Kingston District Council Emergency Management Plan
Emergencies can occur at any time with little warning, rapidly spread over designated boundaries and cause diverse and widespread impacts across affected communities. The Kingston District Council area has experienced emergencies in the past such as the COVID-19 Pandemic, 2020 Keilira bushfire, 2013 tornado and 1897 earthquake. In addition to significant coastal management issues, bushfire, storm, flood, and earthquake; new threats are anticipated to emerge in response to changing social, environmental, and economic conditions.
Councils can help to minimise these threats and contribute to the safety and wellbeing of their communities by participating in local emergency management.
The State Emergency Management Plan (SEMP) articulates the roles and responsibilities that Local Government may play in the local emergency management planning. As well as the legislative and administrative roles under the SEMP, the Local Government Emergency Management Framework 2019 sets out roles for Councils in the areas of disaster risk reduction, incident operations and recovery.
Kingston District Council has considered these when developing and adopting an Emergency Management Policy. This Emergency Management Plan is an implementation document that exists to translate the Kingston District Council Emergency Management Policy into clearly defined actions with responsibility and resource allocations.
The current goals established for this plan are:
Disaster Risk Reduction
- Priority 1: Maintain current programs and undertake further research into emergency hazards and impacts to incorporate appropriate disaster risk reduction into Council’s strategic planning documentation.
- Priority 2: Participate in regional planning to implement relevant strategies that reduce impacts of emergencies.
- Priority 3: Promote communication of emergency hazards to increase the resilience of our community.
- Priority 4: Partner with key stakeholders and advocate for funding to support disaster risk reduction projects.
Incident Operations
- Priority 5: Develop and maintain Council’s capacity and capability to support emergency operations.
Recovery
- Priority 6: Build and maintain Council’s capacity and capability to support recovery operations.
- Priority 7: Partner with key stakeholders to build a connected and resilient community that can recover following a major emergency.
The Emergency Management Plan forms part of Council’s commitment to emergency management and ensures that Council has a coordinated and planned approach to managing the consequences of emergencies in its community.