Strengthen connections → Build resilience
We help the community of Cherry Gardens and surrounding properties to find services and support immediately after a local disaster. We do this by encouraging preparedness and connection within the community.
After a disaster, tap the button below to get help or offer help. Our team will match needs with offers and contact you.
What is the first 72 hours?
This is the critical time after a disaster and BEFORE any official agencies can get boots on the ground. If the fire/flood/extreme storm is very localised such help may not arrive at all.
The First 72 hours logo is adapted from the Moira Shire Council. https:/www.moira.vic.gov.au/Community/Emergency-Management/The-First-72-Hours
The Logo Explained
ENACT YOUR PLAN
The immediate threat has passed. You may have stayed to defend, been caught by fire, or moved to a safe area. Now your plan kicks in.
REACH OUT
It's time to connect with your neighbours and others offering help. Connect with our team using the Give Help / Get Help service.
CARRY OUT
It’s time to take action and to help others do the same. With neighbours and community support, you can make real progress.
RECOVER
Recovery seems possible and is quicker because your community is prepared and supporting you. And you are supporting them.
Cherry Gardens Connect2Recover
Who We Are
We are a volunteer group serving Cherry Gardens and surrounds. We work as a sub-committee of the Cherry Gardens Memorial Hall. Our members come with a wide range of experience and skills from long-term residents, local clubs, emergency services, and business.
We value the landscape and lifestyle of the hills and have chosen to live with its consequences. We understand the need for a post-disaster recovery plan. This is a practical way to support one another if a major event such as fire, flood or severe storm affects our community.
What We Do
• Develop a local recovery plan based on our community knowledge
• Strengthen local organisations involved in recovery
• Support neighbourhood connections and communication networks
The following organisations have generously agreed to support the community with services as they become identified should a local disaster occur.
Blackwood Golf Club
Cherry Gardens Memorial Hall
Cherry Gardens Uniting Church
Cherry Gardens Ironbank Recreation Ground
What if?
A bushfire or other disaster in our community leaves you without access to:
Power
Do you have access to an alternative source of electricity? We are working on having back-up power available at the Cherry Gardens Memorial Hall so that you can charge your devices. Note that the hall is not a Bushfire Safer Place or a Bushfire Last Resort Refuge.
Reception
Mobile phone towers and internet services may be down. During the recovery period, we are planning to set up Cherry Gardens Memorial Hall as a Communications hub where internet access and wifi will be available. Note that the hall is not a Bushfire Safer Place or a Bushfire Last Resort Refuge.
Water
Mains water is likely to be unavailable and your tanks may be contaminated or unusable or emptied. What or where is your alternate water supply? Relief agencies with water may take several days to arrive.
Road Access
After a disaster, authorities may restrict access over time as follows:
Emergency services only
Essential services (e.g. SA Power Networks)
Bona fide residents
Relief / Recovery services
Open to all
Food and Shelter
Your food, a place to sleep and bathroom facilities may be destroyed or inaccessible. What is your plan? Family, neighbours? The Blackwood Golf club has offered their kitchen and bathroom facilities to be available for use during this post disaster period.
But what can I do now? I'm pretty busy
It's all about connection. Who's that person that walks past your gate? Give them a hello and introduce yourself. Knowing your neighbours and setting up a messaging system can be very helpful in times of emergency and recovery. Look up the CFS website for a few tips on making your home a little safer. Register offers of help in our Get Help / Give Help system ahead of a disaster. Bookmark this site and visit regularly.
Phone messaging system
One way of keeping a group of neighbours in the loop is to use a phone messaging system, others may prefer a ring around or door knock. To set up a phone messaging group you can use an app such as WhatsApp. Start a new conversation and add recipients by typing in phone numbers.
CFS Preparation for a bushfire tips
Resources are available to prepare your home and property to make it safer for the bushfire season
https://www.cfs.sa.gov.au/plan-prepare/before-a-fire-be-prepared/preparing-your-home-property/
Cherry Chatter
Our linear community is fortunate to have this hardworking community organisation with their ongoing publication to keep us abreast of what's happening around Cherry Gardens. Check your letterbox or go to the website for the latest updates.
PREPARE TO RECOVER
Community-level disaster happens infrequently, maybe only once, maybe never. So it’s hard to prepare for something we don’t have much practice with. Research shows communities that think about what they might do if a disaster occurs usually fare better in the aftermath.
We live in the hills and we all know that we should prepare for bushfire season and other potential disasters. The best place for advice is the relevant authorities such as the CFS. Connect2Recover is about preparing for the time after the fire has gone through, after the winds have subsided, and after the floods have left their muddy flow. It’s the 72 hours when the community is on its own, while post-disaster resources are hopefully rallying somewhere in the background.
When a community-level disaster occurs, there is usually a flood of response from locals and people from further afield, offering help and items of goodwill. Unfortunately, those in need can be too caught up in the chaos of loss to find and connect with those offering support. By registering your needs after a disaster, our volunteers will connect you with offers of help.
Consider planning ahead and thinking about what you might be able to offer after a disaster. Do you have a paddock that could house a few sheep? Chainsaw skills and a chainsaw? A spare water pump or garden tools? You can register offers now or at any time.
Image: Cherry Gardens Fire, January 2021
Contact Us
Some Useful Resources
Australian Government Websites