Resilience & Emergency Planning

In times of crisis, it is vitally important that communities stand together. Community Resilience enables communities to take control, not only to prevent but also to deal with emergency situations as and when they occur.

Lyndhurst Parish Council is committed to helping residents to be more resilient and prepared and will work closely with Hampshire County Council (HCC) and New Forest District Council (NFDC) to achieve this aim. The Parish Council is doing its part by preparing resilience advice on what residents should do in the event of a range of emergencies and by providing details of who to contact, how and when

Priority Service Registers (PSR) are available with all the Utility companies – Gas, Electric, Water as well as Banks, and possibly telecommunications companies. Vulnerable people can have themselves added to these lists. Unfortunately, not all companies are signed up to data sharing so people have to register with each provider individually. The PSR’s will then attempt to meet people’s special needs e.g., needing emergency water delivered during an outage lasting longer than 12 hours, providing heaters, offering alternative ways of communication.

In some emergencies the safest action is to stay inside, but if the emergency services think it safer to evacuate, the police will clear the area. The District Council will normally provide accommodation for people made temporarily homeless, often by opening a rest centre.

Listen for updates and safety advice on the radio or television and follow advice from emergency authorities.

Practise evacuation procedures beforehand, including a head count.

Have your car under cover, with a full fuel tank, and plan a safe route.

If you do evacuate:

• Gather family and pets
• Turn off the electricity, gas and water, and lock doors and windows
• Take cash, cheque books, credit cards, social security documents and portable valuables
• Take your emergency survival kit with you.

You may experience a range of physical and emotional reactions after the emergency. These are a normal response to the experience, but consult your GP if they continue.

Further information on preparing for emergencies is available from GOV.UK – Preparing for emergencies.

By listening to the weather forecasts and taking appropriate action when warnings are issued, many emergencies can easily be avoided.

• Met Office – Understanding forecasts
• Download the Met Office weather app
• Check your five day flood risk and sign up for flood alerts

During the winter months, it is important that we are easily seen. By being bright and wearing high visibility or reflective clothing we can improve our own safety, especially in rural areas or where there is less street lighting. Reflective clothing, working lights and items such as wrist bands or strips can be cheap and very effective.

Surface water flooding currently causes the most regular impact to communities across the county.

Ditches and watercourses are designed to drain surface water away; helping to prevent flooding. Ensure ditches and water courses are clear of debris and vegetation is cut back so that water can flow freely.

If you have a power cut, call 105 to get up-to-date information. You can also text POWER and your postcode to 80876. They should also be able to let you know when the power will be back on.

If the power remains off for some time make sure you check how safe the food in your fridge and freezer is and dispose of items that are no longer safe to eat.

If you think you can smell gas, call the Gas Emergency Services on 0800 111 999.

If you think you have a gas leak you should:

• turn off your gas supply at the meter
• find your emergency control valve and turn the handle so the lever is at 90 degrees to the upright gas pipe
• open all your doors and windows
• make sure you don’t switch anything electrical on or off
• put out all naked flames

If you have any electrical security entry phones or locks, don’t use them. Open your doors manually.