Over the last few years nature has thrown a lot of the Manning Valley - drought, bushfires, floods.
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The communities of Harrington and Crowdy Head are among the more vulnerable, but a special project, launched last weekend, will ensure those residents are adequately prepared, adequately resourced and know who to call when the next emergency arises.
That project is the Harrington/Crowdy Head Emergency Plan and Resilient Community Guide.
Community liaison officer with the resilience team, Mike Parson explained at the launch at Harrington Community Centre, the biggest task was producing a unique "Harrington/Crowdy Head-Resilient Community" handout to be distributed to all community members about how best they can prepare for emergencies and receive ongoing support.
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Mike was a member of the bushfire recovery committee set up by MidCoast Council after the 2019 "Black Summer" bushfires. The publication was made possible by a grant to Harrington and Surrounds Business and Community Association from the MidCoast Council Disaster Recovery Fund.
Mike recalled that day in 2019 when Harrington made the front page of the Daily Telegraph "for all the wrong reasons. Fabulous photograph (of the fire in Murray Street) but there was a lot of angst and unknowns. A threatening time that I am sure we all well and truly recall."
The guide was produced with the help of any government and non-government organisations.
The resilience team's aim is to support its communities to prepare, respond and recover from disasters and provide opportunities for people to volunteer, thus contributing to the wellbeing of the community; and to develop awareness of the natural environment which may be impacted by disasters.
Saturday's launch, attended by MidCoast mayor Claire Ponton, was "a massive event," Mike said. He introduce some of the committee who helped deliver the project, Vicki Connell, Mark Coss, Tim Yapp, Cliff Hoare, Kevin Unicomb, Tony Moodie and Ken Billings, adding thanks to Janine Friedrich from MidCoast Council who was a mentor and collaborator throughout the entire process and "a special shout out to Maria Quintero from the Red Cross."
"Today is a day to celebrate a vital information booklet for our residents and visitors and thank our volunteers that have been so dedicated to produce this quality information piece."
"The Harrington/Crowdy Head Emergency Plan and Harrington/Crowdy Head-Resilient Community guide is only the beginning of how we can work together to stay safe in future disasters."
