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Council & Business

13 October, 2022

Council retains safer places for emergencies

Maryborough’s Princes Park and Pascoe Reserve, Talbot’s Pioneer Reserve, Dunolly’s Gordon Gardens and Carisbrook’s Market Reserve will remain neighbourhood safer places in the event of an emergency, following a review undertaken by CFA and...

By Riley Upton

Pascoe Reserve — where Maryborough Little Athletics runs — is a neighbourhood safer place for when emergencies occur.
Pascoe Reserve — where Maryborough Little Athletics runs — is a neighbourhood safer place for when emergencies occur.

Maryborough’s Princes Park and Pascoe Reserve, Talbot’s Pioneer Reserve, Dunolly’s Gordon Gardens and Carisbrook’s Market Reserve will remain neighbourhood safer places in the event of an emergency, following a review undertaken by CFA and council.

Central Goldfields Shire councillors moved at last month’s council meeting to adopt the updated Neighbourhood Safer Places Plan 2022/23, with no changes or additional sites included since last year’s review.

According to the report tabled to council, the designation of neighbourhood safer places, also known as places of last resort, and the development of the Neighbourhood Safer Places Plan are direct consequences of the Black Saturday fires and the recommendations from the Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission.

The report states that as a result of the royal commission, Victorian councils are required to identify, certify, designate, establish and maintain safer places, which for the 2022/23 year include

• Talbot — Pioneer Reserve (grounds only)
• Maryborough — Princes Park and Jack Pascoe Reserve (ovals only)
• Dunolly — Gordon Garden Reserve (grounds only)
• Carisbrook — Market Reserve (grounds only)

The report states that while having a series of neighbourhood safer places provides some protection to the community, it highlights that there is no guarantee of safety or survival at these locations.

It also identifies that safer places may not have the capacity to cater for special needs and there will be no support services such as food or drink or provisions for pets.

Speaking during the meeting, councillor Wayne Sproull said the five places of last resort had been assessed prior to their approval.

“The neighbourhood safer places are selected and inspected before the bushfire season and these places are the same as they were last year,” he said.

“Neighbourhood safer places are to be used as a last resort in case of a bushfire — they are not community refuges or emergency relief centres.”

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