Emergency situations on farms can happen unexpectedly with little to no warning. Whether a fire ignites, an employee is injured, or an unexpected machinery accident occurs, it’s important to be prepared for emergencies on your farm.
After all, the more prepared you are for possible emergencies, the easier it will be to mitigate the risks and help prevent complications. Farmsafe Australia recommends considering the below points to help be prepared for an emergency on a farm:
The purpose of an emergency plan is to minimise the effects of a dangerous incident. Emergency plans can be created for fires, floods, storms, machinery accidents (among other emergency scenarios). Consider displaying an emergency plan in a visible place and practising it with family and employees so that everyone remembers the plan in an emergency.
When developing an emergency plan for a farm, consider:
When creating an emergency plan, it’s helpful to include procedures for responding to emergencies, including evacuation routes, notifying emergency services, communication protocols and details of who can provide medical assistance.
When choosing a first aid kit for a farm, it’s important to consider if it’s appropriate for the number of people who work on the farm and the types of injuries that might arise on the farm. For example, injuries that could arise on a farm include snake and spider bites, cuts, burns, broken bones, drowning, electrocution, and motorbike and quad bike injuries. First aid kits are available at places like St John Ambulance, Australian Red Cross, chemists and hardware stores.
Learning CPR and other basic first aid may help save someone’s life. First aid training is offered through organisations such as Australian Red Cross, St John Ambulance and local TAFE colleges.
Farm work is often undertaken alone and long distances from home and emergency service providers. This geographical isolation makes it important to have good communication tools on a farm, such as two-way radios, mobile phones, and emergency beacons. It’s helpful to stay in touch with anyone working alone on a farm, know their location on the farm, and know when they are expected to return.
Keeping an emergency card with contact information and directions to the farm next to communication tools (such as phones and two-way radios) will assist in the event of an emergency, as it will provide easy access to emergency contact numbers and other important information to provide emergency service providers. Farmsafe Australia has a Farm Emergency Information Card template accessible here.
WFI Insurance can provide peace of mind by offering customised insurance policies that protect you from unexpected events. To find out more about protecting the things you care about with a WFI insurance policy, contact WFI on 1300 934 934 or visit wfi.com.au.
This is general advice only and does not take into account your individual objectives, financial situation or needs (“your personal circumstances”). Before using this advice to decide whether to purchase a product, you should consider your personal circumstances and the relevant Product Disclosure Statement and Target Market Determinations available from the product issuer, Insurance Australia Limited ABN 11 000 016 722 AFSL 227681 trading as WFI.