Download our free Fire Emergency Plan Checklist to review your emergency plan before fire season.
A farm emergency plan protects everyone on farm, from employees to family members and visitors. It also takes into account animals, crops, buildings and machinery depending on the emergency.
To make a farm emergency plan, start by assessing the risks on your property. Then write clear procedures, share the plan with everyone on farm, and train and test it regularly.
Preparing for an on-farm emergency is good practice and a legal requirement under WHS and OHS laws. A PCBU (Person Conducting a Business or Undertaking) must have an emergency plan, keep it up to date, test it, and provide workers with information and training on it. Learn the difference between a natural disaster vs emergency on farm.
As the PCBU, you’re responsible for making sure everyone on farm knows the plan.
To prepare your emergency plan, you should consider:
Your farm’s size, location and commodity
Any identified hazards on your property, and whether your site map is up to date
What work is happening on farm right now
Who lives on farm
Home and farm building preparedness
Animal safety, including handling equipment
Your evacuation kit
First aid and medical emergencies
Personal safety and communication
1. Risk Assessments and Planning
2. Policies and Procedures
Write down what everyone should do in each type of emergency. Clear policies and procedures mean nobody has to guess under pressure. Include who’s in charge, where to meet and who calls for help.
3. Communication
4. Training and Testing
Walk your team through the plan when they start and after any changes. Run a practice drill so you can spot gaps before a real emergency hits. Then review the plan whenever something changes on farm.
In addition to having a plan in place, everyone on the farm should be aware of what to do in an emergency, where to access the emergency plan and first aid kit locations.
Among the emergencies you could plan for are:
If an emergency occurs, notify your state WHS regulator of any notifiable incident. Failure to do so can open businesses up to prosecution. Planning ahead, no matter how unlikely an emergency scenario might seem, can help keep your workers and family safe and calm in a high-stress situation.
Topics: Safety Management System
How often should you review your farm emergency plan?
Review it at least once a year, and before each fire season. You should also update it after any emergency, near miss or drill. Changes on farm, like new buildings, workers or machinery, are another good trigger.
Where should you keep your farm emergency plan?
Keep a printed copy somewhere everyone can find it fast, like the main shed or office. A digital copy helps too. With Safe Ag Systems you can store your emergency plan there, so your team knows where to find it. Make sure the printed copy is still easy to reach if the power or mobile coverage goes out.
Do visitors and contractors need to know your emergency plan?
Yes. Anyone on your property could be caught up in an emergency. Brief contractors and visitors when they arrive, and show them where to meet and who to contact.
Is a farm emergency plan the same as a bushfire survival plan?
Not quite. A bushfire survival plan covers what you’ll do if a fire threatens your home and family. A farm emergency plan covers every emergency on your property, including your workers, livestock and machinery. Many farms keep both, with the bushfire plan sitting inside the wider emergency plan.
Should you include livestock in your emergency plan?
Yes. Plan where livestock will go, who’ll move them and how you’ll get water and feed to them. Moving animals early, before conditions get dangerous, keeps both people and stock safer. For bushfire-specific steps, read our guide to protecting livestock in a bushfire.
Disclaimer: Content on this website may be of relevance to users outside of Australia, but content links and examples are specific to Australia. Please check with your local authority for your country and industry requirements.