NEW online disaster dashboards will provide real-time information to help residents and visitors to the Lismore, Richmond Valley and Kyogle areas be aware of, prepare for and respond to local emergencies.
From road conditions and closures, to power outages and river heights, the disaster dashboards are designed as a one-stop-shop for disaster events.
The dashboards provide links to emergency news and contacts as well as a direct feed from the Bureau of Meteorology’s weather warnings.
Other representatives also provide information including Telstra and Health NSW.
The Northern Rivers Joint Organisation (NRJO) successfully secured the funding for the disaster dashboards through Stream 2 of the Bushfire Community Recovery and Resilience fund, which is facilitated through the joint Commonwealth-State Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements.
NRJO Chair Cr Danielle Mulholland said the grant meant all six councils within the NRJO would soon feature a disaster dashboards on their websites.
Richmond Valley Council’s Recovery Manager Kelly Moroney said the disaster dashboards were an essential source of information in emergency events and was encouraging residents to become familiar with the tools available on each councils site.
Ms Moroney said Richmond Valley residents knew only too well the impact emergencies could have on our region.
She said being aware of, and prepared for, disaster was everyone’s responsibility.
“Over the past 18 months, our resilience has been mightily tested by drought, bushfires, flooding rains and the COVID pandemic,” Ms Moroney said.
“There’s so much vital information available on the disaster dashboards and we encourage residents to take the time to look through it to understand what information is available to them should it be needed.”
Lismore City Council Local Emergency Management Officer Scott Turner said it was only natural people experienced stress during a flood or other disaster and the new disaster dashboards would help our communities better access information during times of natural disasters.
Mr Turner said the dashboards were also where residents could find advice on how to prepare for storm season and get disaster ready.
“The disaster dashboards are an online warehouse of real-time, local emergency information supported by Resilience NSW’s Regional Disaster Preparedness Program and rolled out to 27 councils across the State, including Lismore, Richmond Valley and Kyogle councils,” he said.
Kyogle Council Local Emergency Management Officer Tony Lickiss said the amount of real-time data available on the dashboards would help ensure that residents’ focussed on the right things before and during a disaster.
Mr Lickiss said it was crucial that information was shared between communities to ensure better coordination and communication when a crisis hit.
“Delivering real-time, actionable information on current conditions, emergency orders, and disruptions allows everyone to have shared situational awareness to do their part and work collectively to resolve the crisis as quickly as possible,” he said.
On each dashboard you’ll find:
- Real-time information related to live emergencies
- Information to help you prepare for an emergency
- Guidance on the assistance you can access to recover from a recent emergency.
The Regional Disaster Preparedness Program, coordinated by Resilience NSW, works with local governments to build their knowledge of disaster risks and ability to respond in an emergency.
To locate and bookmark each dashboard visit
https://richmondvalleycouncil.disasterdashboards.com/