2. During

Your emergency plan  is tailored to you and covers the steps you need to take if you receive an emergency warning or are impacted by a disaster or emergency.

Your safety during a disaster should be your number one priority. Visit the Queensland Health website for advice on how to stay healthy and safe during disasters, including food and medication safety.

• Park vehicles under cover. If outside, find shelter away from trees, power lines and metal structures. Once inside, stay away from windows and disconnect electrical appliances.
• For non-life threatening storm emergency assistance, such as trees falling on your roof or driveway, contact the State Emergency Service (SES) on 132 500, or request assistance via the SES Assistance QLD app .
• Stay away from fallen power lines and immediately report them to Energex on 13 19 62.
• If you have solar panels, they will continue to produce electricity even if the mains power has been disconnected. Assume the system is live and stay away – follow Energex’s advice on their solar power and battery storage safety webpage.

• If it’s flooded, forget it! Never drive through floodwater.
  • A car can be moved by as little as 15cm of fast flowing water.
  • Most flood fatalities occur in minor or moderate floods from people attempting to cross a flooded road, most often when they are trying to make their way home.
• Avoid walking, swimming or playing in floodwater. Avoid drains and culverts.
• For non-life threatening flood emergency assistance, where your house is flooded or about to flood, contact the State Emergency Service (SES) on 132 500, or request assistance via the SES Assistance QLD app.

• Follow the current bushfire warning and instructions which will be available on the Ipswich Disaster Dashboard .
• If you have a bushfire survival plan, follow it now.
• Do not expect a firefighter at your door – there are not enough crews to assist every home.

• Stay cool by turning the air conditioner on or going somewhere that has air conditioning like a shopping centre and drink water regularly (even if you do not feel thirsty). Find out more on the Queensland Government’s heatwave safety webpage.
• Be on the lookout for signs of heat-related illness. Check on people who may be more at risk of heat-related illness including the elderly, babies and very young children and pregnant or breast-feeding women.

• Visit the Small Business Disaster Hub for tailored resources to help you respond and communicate so you can get back to business sooner when disaster hits

If you are directed to evacuate by emergency services you should do so – they are trying to protect you from harm. Refer to your emergency plan about where you will go and what you will take with you.

Unless you are directed to evacuate by emergency services, consider whether it is safe to shelter in place - this means staying at home if safe to do so. If you have an emergency kit packed and ready, sheltering in place could be a safer option than driving elsewhere if the roads are covered in water or debris, or if visibility is limited due to smoke or severe weather conditions.

In the unlikely event that you need to evacuate, you will usually have three options:

• Stay with friends or family
  • You will be sharing this space, including toilets and showers, with fewer people than if you go to an emergency shelter such as an evacuation centre.
  • If you must leave your home, this will be your most comfortable option as you know and trust the people you are staying with.
• Stay in commercial accommodation
  • If you can’t stay with family or friends, your next most comfortable option will be to stay in a local motel or hotel where you will have the comfort of your own room.
  • There are no private rooms at emergency shelters, instead you will be sharing a large open space with many other residents.
• Attend an emergency shelter
  • Seeking refuge at an emergency shelter should be your last resort, because they are not a resort.
  • At emergency shelters you will be sharing a large open space with many other Ipswich residents at a ratio of one toilet to every 50 people; one shower to every 50 people and 1.5m² of space per person (per the Australian Red Cross preferred sheltering practices guideline).
  • You will not be able to bring your pets inside (unless they are a registered service dog).
  • You will be required to abide by a code of conduct.
  • Council only publishes emergency shelter locations at the time they are needed. This ensures that shelter we open is the safest option based on conditions at the time.
• People with disability
  • Your most comfortable option will be to stay with friends or family, or in accessible commercial accommodation.
    • If you can’t stay elsewhere, you are always welcome at an emergency shelter and we will do our best to assist you.
    • While accessibility features are a key component of selecting potential emergency shelters, unfortunately the nature of disaster events means that emergency shelters may not meet all needs of all people with disability.