Canberra provides relief in time

Canberra provides relief in time

By Dewi Anggraini

MELBOURNE (JP): Last month Jim Soorley, mayor of Brisbane, announced the forthcoming Cities of Asia Pacific Conference on Sept. 29 to Oct. 1 in Brisbane. The conference is Soorley's idea, in an attempt to find solutions to future infrastructure crises in the rapidly growing cities of the region. Then early this month, as if to prove the currency and immediacy of this concern, Jakarta was hit, yet again, by massive flooding.

While one of the most rapidly growing cities in the region, Jakarta it seems does not have an adequate emergency service infrastructure, or has one that is become irrelevant and increasingly disabled by the minute. The recent widespread floods were brought about by a continuous downpour from Friday night to Saturday evening. In a country where rain is not uncommon, this is a serious predicament.

There is no doubt that a macro solution to the problems is critically needed. Patchy and ad hoc relief and aid will only prolong the suffering of the city's inhabitants.

For those affected by the recent disaster however, the idea of macro solutions may not bring much comfort. They take time and cost an enormous sum of money to those in authority, thus require unwavering political will. People want action now, so the authorities are faced with the immediacy of providing necessary assistance.

While Australian cities at first glance are hardly comparable to our beloved capital Jakarta, it has to be noted that they have their fair share of problems pertaining to the uncooperativeness of mother nature. Australia is a dry continent. In the center and southern parts, the summer temperature can reach up to the middle forties Celsius. Once a bushfire starts it can flare up to an uncontrollable proportion. In many areas and instances water becomes so scarce the ground cracks from dryness. It can be imagined what the first decent downpour can do.

Indeed, fires and floods are no strangers to many Australians, especially those who live inland.

According to David Craven, assistant director for Emergency Planning of Victoria State Emergency Service (SES), there have been more floods than fires in most parts of Australia. The latest major floods that hit northeastern Victoria in 1993 was enormously widespread and cost billions of dollars of damage. However, human casualties have been few.

Organizing and coordinating emergency service in Australia is no mean feat. The expanse of the populated areas of the country makes rescue and disaster relief operations incredibly expensive. Yet the SES's annual budget is a mere A$5 million (US$3.75 million). Can they manage on that budget? And how?

At Commonwealth level, Emergency Management Australia (formerly National Disaster Organization) was founded in 1974. This organization, housed under the Department of Defense, has a training college in Mt. Macedon, Victoria, where they train personnel of various emergency services, nationally.

Each state and territory has a state level organization, State Emergency Service, under the Department of Justice, which handles various emergency situations. It is the portfolio of the Minister for Police and Emergency Services. The organization's integrated approach to all hazards is based on its own operations. The SES coordinates rescue operations from other agencies, such as the fire brigades, the ambulance service and the police force.

At receiving a distress call, the SES assesses the situation quickly and coordinates the rescue operation. For instance, a major two-vehicle collision may need an ambulance, a fire truck and the presence of police officers. And if one of the vehicles is a truck carrying a 10 gallon barrel of liquid petroleum, the area may need to be evacuated and cordoned off.

The SES also relies on a comprehensive approach: prevention, preparedness, response and recovery. In this it is very much aided by an Act of Parliament passed in 1986, Emergency Management Act, which specifies that every municipal government must prepare a plan for prevention, preparedness, response and recovery. Thus, across Victoria there are 145 units, manned mainly by trained volunteers. Funding for these units is received from Commonwealth grants and subsidies, for instance for an office when a new unit is founded, state government which supports daily operations and vehicles, and lastly, the local government will match dollar-for-dollar funding from the Commonwealth and the state.

The benefit of networking is enormous. Victoria alone, with a population of four million, has a task force of 150 thousand trained volunteers, who are ready to respond to disasters, assisting the full-time personnel. Six thousand of these are in the SES. The rest are in the Red Cross, the police and the Department of Agriculture.

In the areas of prevention and preparedness, while some natural disasters, such as storms and floods, cannot be prevented, the SES has planning programs. Steps are taken to warn the population of the vulnerable areas. Forecasts from the bureau of meteorology regarding flood warnings are widely publicized in the media. Evacuees are provided with temporary accommodation and day-to-day needs, even temporary schooling. In urgent cases, telephones and loudspeakers are used to warn residents. Those with further inquiry can contact their municipal government offices. The status of fire danger is publicized every day. In places where people tend to have outdoor barbecues, there are very visible signs indicating the fire danger or temporary prohibition against lighting fires, where fines can be imposed. Regulations require that trees be a certain distance from dwelling places. Residents who plan to build in flood prone areas are also warned against it.

When disasters do occur and people are affected, response is prompt. Relief involves temporary accommodation, medical attention, food and clothes, and other emergency services.

The Victoria SES has 70 full-time staff who provide support to the 145 municipal local units across the state, in the form of equipment, equipment maintenance and upgrading, training and various other needs. It also distributes educational kits to primary schools to raise safety awareness in the young.

It is apparent that this infrastructure is relatively new to Australia. However, government backing is crucial, and the 1986 Emergency Management Act provides the legal foundation to it, says David Craven.

Government backing and legal foundation, networking and community awareness, it appears, play important roles in emergency service.

The writer is a free-lance journalist based in Melbourne.

Window: When disasters do occur and people are affected, response is prompt. Relief involves temporary accommodation, medical attention, food and clothes, and other emergency services.