The Disaster Recovery Toolkit for Local Government provides a range of tools, resources and literature to help local government and communities prepare for, respond to and recover from disasters.
The toolkit is the result of a collaborative project with the 10 local councils most affected by the 2009 Victorian bushfires.
The project aimed to build on current and emerging capabilities following the 2009 fires to support a whole of council and community approach to disaster recovery. It looked to strengthen business continuity and working relationships, encourage councils to build community resilience, leadership and development and promote existing skills and knowledge.
In consultation with the councils and a variety of stakeholders, the toolkit consists of eight booklets which look at understanding disaster recovery, recovery readiness, response, beyond the disaster and engaging the community in recovery efforts. It also provides a number of recovery tools and resources.
The project was guided by a Project Reference Group, chaired firstly by the Department of Planning and Community Development (DPCD) and then by Regional Development Victoria (RDV). Members included Local Government Victoria (LGV), Department of Human Services (DHS) and the Municipal Association of Victoria (MAV).
The participating councils were Alpine, Baw Baw, Latrobe, Mitchell, Mount Alexander, Murrindindi, Nillumbik, Wellington, Whittlesea and Yarra Ranges.
RDV has worked with Emergency Management Victoria (EMV) to publish the toolkit, which has been distributed to the 10 councils involved in the project.
It is available to all local government authorities across Victoria and electronically on the EMV website.
Disaster recovery toolkits:
01 – Understanding disaster recovery (PDF 1 MB)
02 – Recovery readiness: preparation for recovery before a disaster (PDF 1.7 MB)
03 – When disaster strikes: the first days and weeks (PDF 1 MB)
04 – Beyond disaster: the months and years ahead (PDF 2.6 MB)
05 – Council business matters: managing the challenges of disaster recovery (PDF 2.2 MB)
06 -Regional recovery networks (PDF 2.6 MB)
07 – Engaging the community in disaster recovery (PDF 1.89 MB)
08 – Recovery tools and other resources (PDF 1.7MB)
The department acknowledges Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as the Traditional Custodians of the land and acknowledges and pays respect to their Elders, past and present.