Making Life Easier During Bushfire Season

Living Out of the Home with Babies and Toddlers

This resource is offered from one family to others with babies and toddlers, following our experience of
living locally during the Summer of 2019/20 bushfires with our 18-month old little one.

It’s not from the experts or authorities, just a neighbourly gesture to make life a little easier during future
bushfire seasons. Everyone prepares in their own way and every experience is different. So, this is by
no means intended to be prescriptive – just one resource to consider.

You might already be more than prepared! During last summer, we met everyone from very experienced
families with amazing mobile set-ups, to families with absolutely nothing and no prior experience.
Looking back on our family’s experience of the Summer of 2019/20 bushfires on the NSW South Coast,
we reflected on what worked best for us during this unprecedented and challenging season, and what
we wish we’d known. It’s not intended as the ideal, or to cover everything. For example, the lists include
more disposable products than we would like, but with limited washing facilities, these were helpful.
However hopefully it will highlight some essentials to make life manageable.

Being Ready for All Eventualities

Bushfire season – it’s long, especially when you have small children – and the circumstances can vary
throughout. We left under an emergency warning, as a major fire approached at unprecedented speed,
ended up in emergency accommodation and then stayed locally, but out of our home for weeks until
power was restored.

The first thing we would say is, take note of what resources are already available in your community.
We feel so fortunate to have felt the enormous support of the Rosedale community, dear friends, and
the Rosedale Association throughout and following this historic bushfire season. We appreciated, and
recommend to others, exploring the resources available in your local community including the NSW
Rural Fire Service and Council websites and social media platforms. If you are in Rosedale, explore the
Rosedale Association website and attend community events held pre, during and post-season. This not
only gave us tremendous practical help but enormous encouragement and fortified spirits during difficult
times. Another invaluable resource for us was the ABC radio, which broadcast with and for the South
East throughout the Summer of 19/20, with critical information and updates available around the clock.

When we headed to a Community Evacuation Centre we found it really helpful for each family
member to have a small backpack with essentials in it. Each person could grab this in an emergency
and keep it on them (along with one for your little ones of course). Whether you’re at a location like this
for a day or even two, or moving locations urgently, this can be invaluable. This pack might include a
face mask, small sunscreen, 24-48 hours’ supply of personal medicines, a bottle of water, 24-48 hours’
supply of non-perishable snacks, a packet of anti-bacterial solution and hand/body wipes, a small
packet of tissues, a torch (we found head torches the most helpful and easiest in the circumstances), a
change or two of underwear, spare batteries for your torch and anything else battery-operated you
might choose to take, and insect repellent. It’s also important to have an emergency change of bushfire
clothing (including sturdy footwear, woollen/natural fibre or fire-retardant clothing, head cover).

If you then find your family in Emergency Accommodation for a number of days, or longer as has
been the case for many people, it can involve living out of a room with no power including no
refrigeration, lighting, cooling and communications and even no access to supermarkets for a time.
Being as prepared as possible helps, and you might find it reassuring to have the following ready.

1
For Your Baby

At least one-two week’s supply of essential clothing for your baby or child for all seasons (your
conditions and the weather can change), eg:

 Sleepsuits/sleepwear for different temperatures, including your preferred sleep bag/bed linen –
again, for all different temperatures
 Bibs
 Underclothes (singlets, bodysuits, socks/booties for all seasons)
 T-shirts (short and long-sleeved)
 Shorts
 Leggings/trousers
 Sweatshirts/jumpers
 Hat
 Jacket

Include a spare set of emergency clothing for your baby or child, for eg:

 Face mask (and a spare). Please refer to health authorities’ guidelines on babies and children
and when they are safe/appropriate, including for what ages.
 Fire-retardant or woollen/natural fibre outer clothing to cover entire body and sturdy footwear
 Natural fibre underclothes
 Hat
 A small fire-retardant/woollen blanket

Household items for your baby (just in case access to shops and resupplying is compromised/limited)

 One-two weeks’ worth of disposable nappies, change mats, cleansing wipes, nappy bags
 Medicines, daily creams, lotions etc
 Extra bottled water
 One-two weeks’ supply paper towels
 Your preferred and regular baby carrier that can be worn by parents/carers on the body so the
baby is safely portable and closest to you in an emergency
 A digital thermometer (with spare batteries)
 Spare sterilised bottles/drink bottles/plate/bowl/cutlery
 One-two weeks’ supply of sterilising fluid and container to sterilise in, small tongs, bottle brush
 A week-two weeks’ supply of powdered milk/long life milk/formula
 A week-two weeks’ supply of non-perishable food that is easy to prepare
 Snacks
 Blankets and bedding including a travel cot and x 2 mattress protectors
 Mosquito net (to cover travel cot especially)
 A portable small bath/bath towels, face washers, soap
 Favourite non-electronic toys and books (so helpful in creating a sense of normalcy and
managing long waiting periods)

For the Family

Without the usual household comforts, including power, which means no washing machines,
refrigeration, lighting, cooling etc, we found the following helpful.

 Spare face masks (in case of smoky conditions)

 A family medical kit (to keep in the car)
 One-two weeks’ worth of medicine for each family member
 Large pack disposable gloves (of different sizes for different family members)
 A transistor radio (with spare batteries)

2
  A large bag of ice in your household freezer, with an esky on stand-by ready to go for when
power is lost
 Small portable gas stove and gas bottle
 A week’s supply boxed or bagged non-perishable food for the family
 A good amount of drinking water (eg, one or two cases of bottled water)
 A blanket and pillow for each person
 Sunscreen, hats
 For anyone with long hair – hair ties (to keep hair tucked away in case of embers)
 Sunglasses
 Each person’s medical prescriptions
 Small waterproof zip-lock bags for storage of phones, money, cards etc
 Portable tub for washing dishes, dishwashing liquid and a few tea towels
 An additional small laundry bucket/tub, laundry wash, pegs, a small drying hanger/rack

If you have pets

To help pets manage through emergency and temporary accommodation, the following can be helpful.

 One-two weeks’ worth of food, water bowls, chew treats/snacks, poop bags
 Water for your pet (generous amount, think hot conditions and how pets experience them)
 Sleeping mat
 One-two weeks’ worth of medicine and your pet’s medical prescriptions, Vaccination and
Medical Record Book
 One or two toys and a ball
 Emergency accommodation often requires dogs to have a cage or some sort of containment

Making Packing Easier

Talking about packing at first seemed a little silly, we all know how! However, looking back, having
some help thinking it through would have been a comfort. What we found worked best for us (through
trial and error) was the following. Things were to hand as we needed them. You might find a better way;
the point is – find a system that works best for your family within your circumstances.

The small backpack with essentials for your baby/child (as mentioned on page one) to get you through
24-48 hours in an emergency. For babies, it might include several nappy changes including disposable
nappy mats, bags, and wipes, insect repellent, water, hat, sunscreen, a change of clothing for all
seasons, a change of protective clothing (fire retardant/woollen clothing for the entire body and sturdy
footwear), anti-bacterial solution and wipes, a toy and book, blanket, x3 meals of food and milk/formula,
your baby’s prescriptions, ‘Blue Book’ (or your state’s equivalent of the New South Wales version),
passport, spare thermometer and batteries.

An overnight bag for your baby with a couple of days’ supplies of clothing and bedding (which can be
kept with you and replenished as needed).

A suitcase for your baby/child, with the majority of their clothing and household supplies, so they’re on
hand when you need to replenish the overnight bag.

A food bag for your baby/child, including those feeding household items you need day to day.

A bag per other family members with one-two weeks’ worth of clothing, kept in the car in an accessible
place.

You may already have a car-fridge and generator, which would be wonderful additions if one can
manage them.

We hope this makes life that little bit easier, and wish you all the best with preparations for bushfire
seasons ahead. With best wishes from our family to yours, Rory & Helen