A new, free fire preparedness toolkit aims to assist farmers and land managers in preparing their farms for the fire season.

Agriculture Victoria designed the toolkit with action plans, checklists, maps, recovery plans and evacuation plans.

It also contains blank templates for people to fill in their information.

Agriculture Victoria’s Kylie Macreadie said the toolkit would help farmers prepare their farm business, livestock, staff and infrastructure ahead of the season.

“The checklists and templates published in the toolkit were developed with input from farmers,” she said.

“Learning from the experiences of farmers who have been impacted by fire, we have identified key things that make it harder to recover after a very traumatic bushfire experience.

“For example, having a documented farm asset inventory can greatly assist in assessing loss and damage in the aftermath of a fire.

“Similarly, ensuring your farm documents are securely stored, on the ‘cloud’ or off-farm, will help ease the pressure when it comes to seeking financial support or making insurance claims.”

The Fire Preparedness Toolkit and other bushfire resources are available via agriculture.vic.gov.au and can be used in conjunction with resources from the Country Fire Authority and local councils.

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