Bush fire behaviour is unpredictable and its impact can depend on a number of factors including weather conditions, fuel loads and whether there is a drought or not. These fires have the ability to cause damage to your home.
As recent as September 30, 2013, a bush fire-related insurance claim was lodged with GIO for a property in Londonderry (NSW) for a whopping $33,445. And in October 2013, NSW suffered its worst bush fires since the 1960s, damaging property, bush land and causing two fatalities. The burning question is do you always have to evacuate your property during a bush fire or can you stay and fight?
The New South Wales government together with the Fire and Rescue NSW and NSW Rural Fire Service, have put together a Fire Danger Ratings (FDR) classification system. The rating is based on predicted conditions such as the forecast temperature, humidity, wind and dryness of the landscape. It tells you how a bush fire may act, what impacts there might be on the community and when to implement your bush fire evacuation plan.
The table below is a quick breakdown of each fire level, their potential fire behaviour, impact and what action you should take.
* FDR is determined by the Fire Danger Index (FDI). The FDI is a combination of air temperature, relative humidity, wind speed and drought. An FDI of 1 (Low-Moderate) means that fire will not burn, or will burn so slowly that it will be easily controlled, whereas an FDI in excess of 100 (Catastrophic) means that fire will burn so fast and so hot that it is uncontrollable.
During a bush fire, alert levels are also used to give you an indication of the level of threat from a fire. You’ll find these on the FRNSW and NSW Rural Fire Service websites, and on radio and television. There are three levels of Bush Fire Alerts:
- Advice
This level alerts people that a fire has started but there is no immediate danger. People should continue to stay up to date in case the situation changes.
- Watch and Act
This level informs people that there is a heightened level of threat. Conditions are changing and you may need to act quickly to protect you and your family.
- Emergency Warning
An Emergency Warning is the highest level of Bush Fire Alert. You may be in danger and need to take action immediately. Any delay could put your life at risk.
Remember to make sure you have adequate home and contents insurance cover should the unthinkable happen, prepare an evacuation plan and stay tuned in for any fire risk reports to find out if you need to evacuate your property or not.
