Australian Government Role in National Natural Disasters

A Snapshot of Emergency Assistance for Natural Disasters in Australia

The Australian Government recognises the unpredictable nature and potential devastating impact of natural disasters such as bushfires, floods and cyclones.

Protecting the community and property from natural disasters is primarily the responsibility of the State and Territory Governments but the Australian Government assists the States and Territories by enhancing their response capabilities and providing extra resources as required.

During a natural disaster the community response is coordinated by the local Emergency Services organisations.

Listed below is an overview of the Australian Government role following a natural disaster.

If you require assistance during a natural disaster, contact 000 or your local Emergency Services.

Overview of Australian Government Assistance

Emergency Management Australia (EMA)

EMA administers the Natural Disaster Relief and Recovery Arrangements, to alleviate the financial burden on States and Territories by providing partial reimbursement of State and Territory expenditure on a range of relief and recovery measures.

EMA provides funding through the Regional Flood Mitigation, the Bushfire Mitigation and Natural Disaster Mitigation Programs to reduce the impact of floods, storms, bushfires and other natural disasters on communities, and assists States and Territories to fund aerial firefighting capacity.

For further information, email: ema@ema.gov.au

Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA)

The Australian Maritime Safety Authority (AMSA) is the Australian Government agency with a primary role in maritime safety, protection of the marine environment and maritime and aviation search and rescue. It coordinates maritime and aviation search and rescue operations in Australia's internationally agreed search and rescue region and works in cooperation with other agencies, particularly State/Territory Police, which provide search and rescue services within their jurisdictions. AMSA also manages the National Plan, the integrated government and industry organisational framework for effectively responding to ship-sourced marine pollution.

More information: http://www.amsa.gov.au

Bureau of Meteorology

The Bureau of Meteorology plays a vital role as the primary provider of weather, hydrological, climate and oceanographic forecasts and information. The Bureau is responsible for the issue of warnings to the Australian community of gales, storms and other weather conditions likely to endanger life or property including weather conditions likely to give rise to flood or bush fires; tsunami and extreme climate events.

More information: http://www.bom.gov.au

Centrelink

Centrelink plays a key role in the whole of government response to emergencies by supporting the recovery of individuals, families and communities through the delivery of income support, and other assistance, to those affected by a disaster. This includes:

• ensuring that Centrelink payments are not disrupted at times of emergency;
• establishing dedicated hotlines to assist those affected and their families (these may be joint State/Territory operations, with staffing from jurisdictions);
• delivery of additional income support payments that may be available such as, Crisis Payment , Special Benefit, Australian Government Disaster Recovery Payment or ex gratia payments;
• delivery of targeted payments, processes and information;
• activation of dedicated processing centres;
• specialist staff providing assistance with counselling and referral services to complement the services provided by State and Territory governments; and
• working closely with the state and territory governments to provide effective liaison and coordination of response and recovery services to individuals affected by the disaster.

More information: http://www.centrelink.gov.au

Department of Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry

Farm Help and the Rural Financial Counselling Service Program are two programs developed as part of the Australian Government's Agriculture Advancing Australia (AAA) package that may be of assistance to affected primary producers.

More information: http://www.daff.gov.au

Department of Defence

Assistance includes, but is not limited to, transport and logistical support, evacuation, rescue, medical services, provision of emergency accommodation and supplies:

More information: http://www.defence.gov.au

Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA)

Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA) where appropriate, supports the recovery of individuals, families and communities through:

• assistance available under the FaHCSIA portfolio including income support payments and other community programs such as the Family Relationship Services Program, Financial Counselling Program, Emergency Relief Program and Local Answers;
• the development of ex gratia assistance, where authorised by Government; and
• the development of recovery strategies; and working with Centrelink to ensure that those affected by a disaster can access assistance.

More information: http://www.fahcsia.gov.au

Geoscience Australia

Provides national geoscientific research and information to assist Government make informed decisions about resource use, management of the environment, and the safety of the community.

Its role includes maintaining a network of seismographs throughout the continent as part of Australia's earthquake alert system, a 24-hour monitoring facility used to inform the emergency management community of seismic events. In addition, risk assessments are developed using an extensive network of spatial databases that include topographic maps, satellite imagery, critical infrastructure and post-disaster information collected by Geoscience Australia's expert technical team. This provides Government with comprehensive information and advice on mitigating risk in Australia and the region.

More information: http://www.ga.gov.au

 

Other Useful Websites

Red Cross
http://www.redcross.org.au

Australian Federal Police
http://www.afp.gov.au

Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade
http://www.dfat.gov.au
Consular Duty Officer: +61 2 6261 3305 or 1300 555 135 toll free (within Australia only)