A STAGGERING one in three of people reading this letter will face at least one natural disaster in their lifetime. And after the disaster hits, sadly there’s one thing most will also experience: regret about not being better prepared.
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In Emergency Preparedness Week, Red Cross is calling on all Australians to take action before it’s too late. We want all Australians to be prepared for an emergency, whether it’s as large as a bushfire, cyclone or flood, or as personal as a family crisis .
Too many conversations after an emergency begin with “I wish I had…”. People wish they’d taken the kids’ baby photographs; kept their passports safe; upped their insurance; looked in on their neighbours.
For decades, we’ve seen firsthand the trauma, stress, and hardship that disasters bring; things many of us just aren’t prepared for like anxiety, grief and loss, relationship problems, and financial hardship that can go on for many years.
You can’t get back what you’ve lost after an emergency. But you can plan to protect what matters most. And that’s different for everyone.
Our free guide can spare people much of the avoidable grief and trauma. Download your RediPlan at redcross.org.au/prepare and get prepared.
Jody Broun, New South Wales Director, Australian Red Cross
Domestic violence campaign in region’s clubs
I WRITE in relation to the article “Clubs - not Orange's - join the domestic violence fight” printed on September 15, 2016, which praised ClubsNSW for supporting a campaign by the NSW Police Force and NSW Government to tackle domestic violence.
While this paper’s support for ClubsNSW and the campaign to reduce domestic violence is welcome, the article incorrectly stated Central West communities have missed out on being able to participate in the campaign despite unacceptable levels of domestic violence.
The “It’s not your fault” initiative was piloted at ten clubs across the state, in areas identified as the greatest priority by the NSW Police because of extreme levels of domestic and family violence.
The pilot program has been deemed a success, so the police and ClubsNSW this week launched the campaign to all clubs across NSW.
A number of clubs in the Central West have already committed to supporting the campaign and we expect the great majority of people living West of the Great Dividing Range will see the campaign when they visit their local club.
We hope it leads to fewer incidents of family violence and encourages victims to come forward.
We thank the Central Western Daily for its support and interest in this important initiative.
Anthony Ball, CEO ClubsNSW
Phone scams still catching out the unaware
I’M surprised to hear some gullible people are still falling for phone scams.
These fraudsters, mostly operating out of India, have been in business for almost two years now.
Equally ubiquitous are the scammers who claim to be calling from Telstra's "technical department" about problems with your computer.