Cook Shire 'Gets Ready' with donations of radios to Rural Fire Brigade

Cook Shire Council in partnership with the Queensland Government’s Get Ready Queensland, recently donated six waterproof hand-held, UHF radios and as well as an emergency dedicated tablet to the Cooktown Rural Fire Brigade

The new telecommunications equipment will help improve crucial communications between all agencies, contractors and volunteers during an emergency. The radios will also provide failsafe communications for emergency crews in blackspot areas where there is no mobile service as well as during emergency situations when mobile services are disrupted. 

The tablet – through the use of a specialised app – will be used to provide offline access to maps to help teams identify rural blocks of land. 

 “By enhancing the way our emergency teams communicate with each other during an event, we are improving efficiency and building resiliency. This ensures we’re better prepared for the next inevitable disaster which can potentially save lives, property and livestock,” said Cook Shire Mayor and Chair of the Local Disaster Management Group (LDGM) Cr Peter Scott.

The radios were presented by Cr Scott at a recent meeting of the LDMG to Joe Cullen, Acting Inspector, Area Director of Cairns Peninsular Area Rural Fire Service, and Jason Carroll Captain of the Cooktown Auxiliary Fire Brigade.

The Get Ready Queensland program is a year-round, all-hazards resiliency building initiative to help communities prepare for natural disasters.

Image available to download here.

For more information contact Senior Media, Marketing and Communications Officer via email at mail@cook.qld.gov.au or phone on 4082 0500.

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