Victorians who have helped their communities become safer and better prepared for emergencies have been recognised at the 2016 Resilient Australia Awards ceremony in Melbourne.
The national awards recognise local projects that help communities become more resilient before, during and after natural disasters, such as bushfires, heatwaves and storms.
Minister for Emergency Services James Merlino today presented the awards to the Victorian winners.
Anglesea Primary School received the Resilient Australia School Award for its partnership with the local fire brigade, which saw primary students become the teachers about fire safety in their homes and local community through the Survive and Thrive program and the creation of the Anglesea Junior Fire Brigade.
Yarra City Council was awarded the Resilient Australia Government Award for its work increasing awareness of heatwave risks in local migrant communities living in public housing.
The council’s media campaign reached about 450,000 people. Forty thousand community members participated in council activities, such as English language classes, concerts and community festivals, where they received heatwave risk information and products.
Australian Red Cross in the Grampians won the Resilient Australia Community Award and ARC Ventures won the Resilient Australia Business Award for their projects to help local communities prepare for, respond to and recover from emergencies and disasters.
A number of highly commended projects in each category were also recognised.
Glenn Daniels from the Bendigo Advertiser received the Resilient Australia Photography Award for his photograph of the moment the wind changed and a fire at Blackhill Road near Kyneton started encroaching on a fire truck – a testament to the CFA crews that risk their lives to keep the community safe.
To see the photograph and a full list of winners visit .
The Victorian winners are now finalists in the national Resilient Australia Awards.
Quotes attributable to Minister for Emergency Services James Merlino
“Congratulations to the Victorians being honoured at the Resilient Australia Awards for their hard work in making our communities safer, stronger and better prepared to manage natural disasters.”
“These awards are a great example of the innovative work being done by communities, government, schools and businesses to build more resilient communities that are better prepared for emergencies and disasters.”
Reviewed 19 August 2020