A new national warning system has been developed to provide a nationwide approach to warnings for hazards such as bushfire, flood, storm, cyclone, extreme heat and severe weather.
Minister for Emergency Management, David Littleproud said the Australian Warning System would help people prepare for disasters and delivered on the recommendations of the Royal Commission into National Natural Disaster Arrangements.
Mr Littleproud said the System was developed based on community research and input from Australia’s emergency services and hazard Agencies.
“Now that summer has started and the disaster season is upon us, this new System will make it easier for people to recognise and understand emergency warnings wherever they are in Australia,” Mr Littleproud said.
“In the past Australians had been relying on different warning systems for different hazard types that varied across jurisdictions,” he said.
“The new warnings have come into effect for bushfires in all jurisdictions except for Western Australia, which will adopt it in the near future.”
Mr Littleproud said warnings for other hazards including cyclones and heatwaves would be phased in over time.
The Minister said the new System used a nationally consistent set of icons to show incidents on websites and apps that were supported by calls to action.
He said the three warning levels were:
Advice (Yellow), an incident had started, there was no immediate danger and people should stay up to date in case the situation changed;
Watch and Act (Orange), a heightened level of threat, conditions were changing and people needed to take action to protect themselves and their family; and
Emergency Warning (Red), the highest level of warning, people may be in danger and needed to take action immediately, any delay put their life at risk.
Mr Littleproud commended the Australasian Fire and Emergency Services Authorities Council for the development of the Australian Warning System.
