Salvation Army Emergency Services on site and ready for cyclone response
BY SIMONE WORTHING
In Queensland
Salvation Army Emergency Services (SAES) teams are on site as Tropical Cyclone Alfred continues its path to reach landfall between the Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast.
Heavy rain and destructive winds are already wreaking havoc in the Gold Coast and Northern NSW regions as the cyclone approaches the coast, expecting to hit on late Friday or early Saturday morning.
The impact of this category two system is expected to be felt from Double Island Point in Queensland down to Grafton in NSW and as far west as Toowoomba.
“We are working to be in the best position possible to support the community without yet knowing exactly how hard and where Cyclone Alfred will hit. Preparedness is key, especially as the situation on the ground keeps evolving and changing,” said Major Bindy Lupis, National Response Manager, SAES.
New South Wales
Norm Archer, the SAES Response Coordinator for NSW/ACT, is in the Northern Rivers town of Ballina with a team of seven volunteers, an SAES truck, and additional resources for the preparations.
“Again, we wanted to be close, to be ready, before we actually know where the need will be and where we will be deployed,” said Bindy.
In the flood-stricken town of Lismore, the Lismore Corps and SAES teams are already providing support at the evacuation centre located at Southern Cross University, utilising their truck and mobile cool room.
Three evacuation centres are open in Tweed Heads, near the Queensland border. Majors John and Nicole Viles, Tweed Heads Corps Officers, along with their team, are working at these evacuation centres located in clubs and other facilities where on-site kitchens can provide meals for those seeking shelter.
“We also have teams in Sydney on standby, ready to go as soon as it is safe to do so in the coming days,” said Bindy. “This is an essential part of our preparedness.”
Queensland
Adam Cole, the SAES Response Coordinator South and Central Queensland, has been joined by colleagues Carolyn Spratling and Michael West (SAES Response Coordinators for Victoria and Tasmania, respectively) to oversee SAES operations primarily in Brisbane, the Sunshine Coast and the Gold Coast.
They are currently shopping and preparing pre-packed food parcels and other items to be used as needed in the coming days.
In Brisbane, the SAES is on standby for a refuge centre –a place for people to shelter without catering or additional services – for if and when it becomes an evacuation centre where catering and services will be provided.
The Gold Coast team is catering at an evacuation centre in Runaway Bay, northern Gold Coast.
On the Sunshine Coast, SAES teams began catering at an evacuation centre in Nambour yesterday, and the Caloundra team is on standby to assist there today.
“We may be asked to assist in other local council areas,” said Bindy. “We will look into how we may be able to support some areas, but for now, the safety of our volunteers is of priority as the cyclone bears down.”
Recovery plans
Recovery services may begin as early as Monday 10 March.
Angela Aitken, the SAES Recovery Coordinator who has just returned from a month of leading recovery services in Townsville, will oversee this process in QLD.
She is currently securing her home on the Sunshine Coast as Cyclone Alfred rapidly approaches. Major Bev Kingston, the SAES Recovery Coordinator for NSW, will oversee the recovery program in NSW.
