IGEM Report 1: 2017-18 - THE CYCLONE DEBBIE REVIEW

Inspector-General Emergency Management

Themes

Communications infrastructure

Loss of communications Earlier sections of this report have

Heavy rain and cloud caused issues for satellite phone usage, and SES volunteers could not be deployed due to the inability to send and receive activation text messages. Furthermore, during the power disruption, the council was unable to engage with the community to ascertain situational awareness of impacted areas and to provide updates to the affected community. An information void can lead to increased fear, anxiety and inadvertent risk-taking. aware of and can activate should critical communication infrastructure be lost. Communications staff have a role to play in driving the importance of communication plans. Such actions are key to building communities that are resilient and able to cope when disconnected. Communication plans must include contingencies that communities are While there is growing evidence that information and awareness campaigns do inform the actions people take, a number of councils raised concern that this had not necessarily translated into a more proactive and responsive community. Across Queensland, councils cited examples of people who did not prepare to be without power and resources for a few days, who refused to leave their homes when advised of the risks, and care facilities that had little or no evacuation plans and a general false sense of security in clearly high risk locations.

described the importance of local critical infrastructure, and the preparedness of the power and communications utilities to deal with inevitable outages. Councils emphasised their impact. One local group told us their biggest issue during this event was not being able to communicate to, and hear from, the community, “no power equals no communications.” At least six local and district groups identi- fied they lost communication with parts of their community during the event. Mackay Regional Council, for example, encountered significant issues when it experienced loss of communications both with its community and for internal operations, due to power outages and severe weather conditions. Information that influences action Trust and empowerment Fundamental to creating an informed and empowered community is the provision of information that is informative, consistent, and understandable. These factors add to a community’s sense of safety and trust as well as enabling people to act as needed. A direct appeal by the Scenic Rim Mayor to conserve water showed an immediate drop in water usage. Many councils also recorded low attendance levels at evacuation centres citing that community messaging on these centres as places of ‘last resort’ was getting traction.

Finding Loss of communications, in some areas, affected the ability to respond, and to keep the community informed. Not all continuity planning sufficiently considered alternative arrangements.

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The Cyclone Debbie Review

Lessons for delivering value and confidence through trust and empowerment