Do you have a plan for bad weather on Bute?

Last winter we had the '˜Beast from the East' and already this autumn we have had flooding from heavy rainfall and some very high surge tides during big storms.

The Bute Community Emergency Plan was set up to deal with adverse weather on the island.

Are we sufficiently prepared should there be more storms, cold weather, power cuts or flooding this winter?

Following the storms and major power outage on Bute in 2012, Bute Community Council took steps and prepared the Bute Community Emergency Plan which is able to mobilise around 70 volunteers in the event of an emergency.

Ronnie Falconer from the group, said: “Are you ready, have you done all you can to be resilient? You could, for example, look at making your own emergency plan. It should contain the contact numbers of people who might be concerned if you have to leave your home unexpectedly and any contact numbers you might need if something happened. There are templates to get you started on the Ready Scotland website – www.readyscotland.org. You might also want to look at getting together your own household emergency kit just in case, the website has a checklist to help you get started.”

The Isle of Bute Resilience Team formed as an independent volunteer group following the severe weather last February/March and they can provide support not just in an emergency but at other times also.

Bute Community Council has also prepared information sheets to help you, available from Rothesay Library or from Bute Advice Centre in Rothesay. They can also be downloaded from www.community-council.org.uk/bute in the library section under ‘emergency planning’.

You can volunteer for the Bute Community Emergency Plan by calling Ronnie Falconer on 07771 977338.

The Isle of Bute Resilience Team are also looking for volunteers, email [email protected].