Premier & Cabinet

Type:
Department of Premier and Cabinet Circular
Identifier:
C2010-07
Status:
Archived

C2010-07 Implementation in NSW of Emergency Alert, the national telephone emergency warning system

Description

  • Emergency Alert, the national telephone emergency warning system, is now available for use in NSW
  • Emergency Alert may only be used by prescribed emergency management persons in NSW to alert people in locations in situations of emergency

Detailed Outline

Keypoints

On 30 April 2009 the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) agreed to develop a national telephone emergency warning system to enhance Australia’s natural disaster arrangements.

The system, now named Emergency Alert, commenced operation in NSW on 2 December 2009.

Emergency Alert may be used to alert communities to emergencies via a voice message on landline telephones based on the location of the handset and a text message on mobiles, based on a subscriber’s billing address. The Telstra Corporation is contracted to supply and maintain Emergency Alert for all jurisdictions.

The Telecommunications Act 1997 (Cwlth) specifies the permitted uses of the national Integrated Public Number Database (IPND), upon which the Emergency Alert system relies, as:

  • a purpose connected with persons being alerted to an emergency or a likely emergency; and
  • the purpose of reasonable testing of whether, in the event of an emergency occurring, persons would be able to be alerted to that emergency ('permitted purposes').

For New South Wales an ‘emergency’ is as defined in subsection 4 (1) of the State Emergency and Rescue Management Act 1989 (NSW).

In New South Wales, the following emergency management persons have been prescribed under subsection 275B(1) of the Telecommunications Act (Cth) as ‘emergency management persons’ who are authorised to use or to delegate the use of the system:

  1. Commissioner, NSW Fire Brigades
  2. Commissioner, NSW Police Force
  3. Commissioner, NSW Rural Fire Service
  4. Director-General, NSW Department of Health
  5. Commissioner, State Emergency Service of New South Wales
  6. State Emergency Operations Controller

Emergency Alert is available for use in significant and life-threatening emergencies and will play an important role in the comprehensive package of warning tools available to emergency services across NSW. Frontline emergency service workers will continue to make decisions about the best methods of responding to emergencies and to warning those who might be in danger. Traditional warning methods such as door knocks and radio and television broadcast messages will continue to be vital sources of warnings and information.

In advising communities in NSW about the introduction of Emergency Alert it must be stressed that the emergency survival plans that individuals, families and communities have in place are as important as the warning systems available to emergency service workers. For further information about Emergency Alert refer to http://www.emergencyalert.gov.au.

Brendan O’Reilly
Director General

 

 

Overview

Who needs to know and/or comply with this?

Departments
Executive agencies related to Departments
Separate agencies
Statutory Authorities/Bodies

Compliance

Not Mandatory

AR Details

Date Issued
Mar 5, 2010
Review Date
Mar 5, 2015
Replaces
Replaced By

Contacts

Contact
Contact us
Phone
02 9228 5555
Publishing Entity
Department of Premier and Cabinet
Issuing Entity
Department of Premier and Cabinet