JT the prize drawcard for school disaster preparedness competition

One lucky Queensland primary school will score a visit from rugby league legend Johnathan Thurston thanks to a new competition helping students and their families better prepare for natural disasters.

Treasurer and Minister responsible for the Queensland Reconstruction Authority (QRA) Cameron Dick said the Get Ready Queensland schools competition is educating while capturing the imagination.

“This is the first time we’ve run this comp, which is open to all Queensland primary schools,” Mr Dick said.

“Teachers can download a range of activity sheets from the Get Ready Queensland website for students to colour in and personalise their chosen preparedness activity, telling us how they’re getting disaster ready this season.

“We’re then inviting young Queenslanders to create a ‘Get Ready wall’ in their classrooms to showcase some of the simple but effective ways households can get disaster prepared.

“The school judged to have the best Get Ready wall will receive a visit from our Get Ready Queensland Ambassador Johnathan Thurston, who will talk to students about the importance of disaster preparedness.”

Get Ready Queensland Ambassador Johnathan Thurston said the Get Ready schools competition provided a great opportunity for families to come together to discuss how they can prepare for disaster season.

“This program is something that I’m really passionate about and I can’t wait to visit the winning school and talk about how to get ready for disasters,” Mr Thurston said.

“Every family is different – some have pets, some have neighbours they need to check on and they all have different things that are important to them.

“The Get Ready Queensland program encourages all Queenslanders to take steps now to protect their loved ones in the case of an emergency.”

Mr Dick said children and young people were naturally curious about cyclones, bushfires and floods, making the Get Ready Queensland schools competition the perfect platform to educate on natural disasters and how to prepare for them.

“Queensland is Australia’s most disaster-impacted state, so we want our young people and families to understand the importance of disaster preparedness,” Mr Dick said.

“We know it’s not a matter of if but when the next disaster will strike in our state, so we need to do everything we can to mitigate risk and protect lives and property.”

For competition guidelines and information on how to enter, please visit getready.qld.gov.au/schools

ENDS

Media contact: Ben Doyle 0400 775 561