Spandas Lui in ARN.net (Australia) reports on a problem that afflicts everyone in a wealthy country hit by a disaster -- what do you do when the communications networks you depend on are wiped out?: Communities are too dependent on emergency services organisations as well as associated technologies for disaster notifications and should learn to be more self-reliant, according to various Government agencies. The Senate standing committees on Environment and Communications held a parliamentary hearing on the capacity of communication networks and emergency services warning systems for emergencies and natural disasters today.
From bushfires to cyclones, Australia has been rife with natural disasters in recent years. Since December 2010, numerous Queensland towns have been affected by floods. In February this year, Cyclone Yasi hit and devastated Northern Queensland. Inevitably, communication network go down during these kinds of disasters. Telstra, Optus and Vodafone Hutchison Australia (VHA) all experienced network outages during the Queensland floods and Cyclone Yasi mainly due to power outages. Generators were swiftly brought in to restore services.
Fixed-line phone calls, SMSes and radio announcements have all been used by emergency services organisations to notify residents in disaster affected areas. The parliamentary hearing aims to explore just how effective these emergency warning systems are. South Australian Fire and Emergency Services Commission (SAFECOM) chief executive, David Place, told the Committee the public have an unrealistic expectation of what Government organisations should do when it comes to emergency situations....
A Federal Thunderbolt Siren, shot by BuknekkidPhoto by Eric Green, Civil Defense Museum, Wikimedia Commons, under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license
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