Really Rewarding, Health Care Australia Volunteers
Today was really rewarding and a big eye-opener seeing how much was destroyed in the floods. It’s one thing hearing about it – but seeing it is completely different! When we first arrived at a homeowner’s house, we thought “this is a huge job, how...
Never seen anything like this ever – Steve Baker Community Reflection
I’ve lived here for 12 months but I’ve never seen anything like this ever. About a metre of water came barrelling down the stairs and ramps. The water pressure has blown the heavy fire doors off their hinges and ripped them in half. It’s come through the carpark...
Positive About the Future – David
Before moving to Gipsy Point in 2009, I was living in Melbourne and just felt like a tree and sea change, I’ve been here about 12 years now with my partner and our dog Trixie. The day the fire came through was pretty heavy, we had been watching it on the...
I Have Hope Again – Takeshi
The day the fires came into Mallacoota a farmer friend told me it is really coming. My house is on the outskirts of Mallacoota, my driveway is quite long, so I thought, if I stay, I won’t know if the fire comes to us, so decided to go to the shop. I planned to...
Afghan Refugees Rolling up Sleeves for Disaster Relief
In December 2019, devastating bushfires ripped through the Adelaide Hills, destroying 86 houses and damaging around 160 more as well as burning through hundreds of hectares of farmland and vineyards. Following these unprecedented Black Summer bushfires, Disaster...News
Big Map Flood Wise Exercise is being held in Collie, WA. Find out how Project Resilience can benefit your community.
Operation Kelliher Flood Recovery Summary
Disaster Relief Australia (DRA) recently conducted its largest disaster response activity since the organisation’s inception in 2016. In response to the catastrophic flooding that impacted communities in Queensland and New South Wales, our skilled veteran-led volunteers got down and dirty helping with flood recovery as part of Operation Kelliher.
All the Reward I Need, Veteran Phil Wharton
A veteran friend suggested I look at Disaster Relief Australia when I was looking for an opportunity to give back after many years of paid work. I was immediately impressed by DRA’s focus on getting things done and helping others in their hour of need. Thinking about it, I realised there was a huge gap between the initial emergency response in a disaster and the subsequent recovery from that disaster. DRA had the solution, providing teams of motivated, trained and “can do” people to assist others in the recovery phase of a disaster. I joined DRA in my hometown Sydney and very quickly found myself completing induction and a nationally recognised basic first aid course. Right from that moment, I felt a sense of purpose. I went on to complete an advanced first aid course that gave me the knowledge and confidence to treat a wide variety of injuries. I’ve also been trained as a chainsaw operator. I have now deployed on three operations with DRA, two fires and one flood. My roles have been varied in these deployments ranging from Mission Commander right down to strike team member and I can honestly say I have enjoyed them all. There’s nothing more satisfying to me than giving another human a hand up in a time of crisis. The smile on a stranger’s face is all the reward I need. One of the things I really enjoy about DRA is meeting and getting to work with fantastic fellow volunteers. DRA members come from all over Australia and have varied backgrounds. I have deployed with ex police, ex military, paramedics and motivated civilians, amongst others, and made many friends in the process. We all have one thing in common and that is a desire to help others in their hour of need. I find it immensely satisfying to walk amongst people like this. I aim to deploy with DRA at least once a year and hope that I’m able to continue giving back for many years to come.