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.