Residents would not cope

Residents of the Greater Bunbury region would be helpless and unable to fend for themselves in the event of a major disaster, according to City of Bunbury research.

City deputy manager of law and safety Lewis Winter has revealed the city is applying to the Federal Government for $350,000 to fund a natural disaster resilience program because people have forgotten how to be self-sufficient and have become reliant on the Government and emergency services in times of disaster.

‘‘What we are seeing is a greater propensity for catastrophes to happen, through climate change and so on, and less ability to be resilient regarding them,’’ Mr Winter said.

‘‘People are more and more dependant on reticulated water and power coming through the wires—if they haven’t got that, they’re at a loss.’’

Fire and Emergency Services Authority district manager for central south fire services Chris Widmer said community resilience was the responsibility of everyone, and welcomed efforts to increase residents’ self-reliance.

‘‘Emergency services are victims of their own success, because people have become used to relying on us,’’ Mr Widmer said.

‘‘The biggest problem is that people rely on our system and if it were to fail, they would be helpless."