In line with the Country Fire Authority's (CFA) declaration of an Extreme fire danger day for Monday 16 December, there will be several facilities closures and changes to Council services in high fire risk areas.
Council policy aims to protect the safety of employees and the community on days rated by the CFA as having 'Extreme' or 'Catastrophic' fire danger.
Under the policy, Council employees and contractors will not work or travel in fire risk zones at the highest risk times.
As a result, the following service closures and changes will be in place on Monday 16 December:
- Lorne Kindergarten, Jan Juc Pre-School and Anglesea Kindergarten will be closed;
- Anglesea Landfill will be open 5am-10am, and Anglesea Transfer Station 9am-10am. Anglesea Re-sale Shed will be closed;
- Lorne Transfer Station will be closed;
- Scheduled kerbside bin collections (Lorne and Deans Marsh) will be carried out between 3am and 10am. Residents are asked to place their bins out Sunday night.
- Public litter bins in high bushfire risk areas will only be serviced prior to 10am, and potentially in the evening should conditions ease.
- Lorne, Anglesea and Winchelsea visitor information centres will be closed.
General Manager Community Life Damian Waight said Council was on alert for the possibility of dangerous fires.
"The safety of the community and our employees is our absolute highest priority and the expert CFA advice is to avoid high risk areas on Extreme or Catastrophic fire danger days," he said.
"We understand that service disruptions and facility closures are inconvenient, but we are absolutely clear that we will always put people's lives first.
"We thank the community in advance for understanding."
Based on the CFA's fire danger rating forecast, it is expected all services will return to standard operation on Tuesday 17 December. Any changes to this will be communicated.
Council's Facebook and Instagram pages will carry further updates as they become available, while the Council website provides an up-to-date list of changes at surfcoast.vic.gov.au/servicechanges.
"We urge everyone to be prepared for Monday's Extreme fire danger day by downloading the VicEmergency app, having a fire plan and knowing when to leave, and following the CFA's advice," Damian said.
Information about fire danger ratings is available on the CFA website.
