IGEM Report 1: 2017-18 - THE CYCLONE DEBBIE REVIEW

The Cyclone Debbie Review

Note: Recommendations from previous disaster management sector reviews and enquiries also should be noted. Pertin+ent recommendations can be found in the Queensland Flood Commission of Enquiry Interim and Final reports ( http://www.floodcommission.qld.gov.au/ ) and 2009 Victorian Bush Fire Royal Commission ( http://dpc.vic.gov.au/index.php/compo- nent/content/article/22-html/867-2009-victorian-bushfires-royal-commission ) which were accepted by the Queensland Government.

Appendix C

Debbie Themes Report

Commentary

2014-15 Review of Cyclone and Storm Tide Sheltering Arrangements

Recommendation: A state-wide engagement strategy is coordinated to ensure community messaging is consistent across all levels of Queensland's disaster management arrangements. Recommendation: The Public Information and Warnings Sub-plan Guide is reviewed to include: • good practice examples • a broader range of considerations for barriers to effective communication • guidance to ensure warnings and public information are linked with state agency arrangements, when the event is led by a hazard-specific primary agency. Recommendation: Warning and alert systems training (including the use of Emergency Alert and the requirements of the guidelines) is delivered to: • relevant local and district disaster management group members • authorising officers • other relevant stakeholders. Recommendation: Prior to September 2015, the Banana Shire Council develops a multi-channel warning strategy and associated public information campaign, including common language and consistent messaging, for the Banana Shire. Recommendation : Prior to September 2015, SunWater and the Banana Shire Council jointly develop a multi-channel, common warning strategy, including common language and consistent messaging, for residents downstream of SunWater assets within the Banana Shire Council, and clearly articulate procedures for dissemination. Recommendation: An audit of all local government areas vulnerable to storm tide events is undertaken to identify gaps in evacuation zone planning and ensure consistency with neighbouring local government areas and the Queensland Evacuation Guidelines for Disaster Management Groups. Recommendation: A state-wide strategy, including a common definition, is developed for identifying and engaging vulnerable people in emergencies. Recommendation: The evacuation sub-plan component of the Local Disaster Management Plan should be reviewed, including any identified triggers for activation. Ideally, the plan should be tested in a live, multi-agency exercise prior to next summer. Finding: The role of exercises in disaster management is unclear from available documents. There appears to be a gap at state level between evaluation of groups’ performance through exercises, and the training of individuals covered earlier. In addition to their role in testing and evaluation, there is scope to emphasise a type of exercise as a “training exercise”, to allow newly-trained individuals to rehearse and practice their skills together. Finding: There is a lack of clarity about arrangements for state level exercises. There is scope for the peak disaster management body (Queensland Disaster Management Committee) to clearly assign responsibility for coordination of exercises and capture this in the State Disaster Management Plan. Finding: Requirements and responsibilities for participating in, and conducting, exercises are set out in guidelines for local and district disaster management groups. However, there is less stakeholder involvement in the planning of exercises, and in actual participation, and less guidance of an overall exercise program than in other good practice examples. There is scope to improve the strategic level direction of disaster management exercises. Finding: Training and exercises have common stakeholders, and in both sets of arrangements we identified a need for improved stakeholder representation. A single governance structure, covering both disaster management training and exercises, may benefit the outcomes of each. The Counter Terrorism Training and Exercise Management Committee model may be a start-point, and further work might examine how a model could cover disaster management and counter terrorism. Finding: There is scope to improve guidance, arrangements and delivery of both training and exercises; to ensure lessons from exercises feed back into both doctrine and training curriculum development. Finding: Queensland appears to demonstrate good practice in training people to manage exercises, and this capability needs to be maintained. There is an opportunity to better coordinate this through improved governance. Finding 6 also highlighted similarities in exercise management between the counter-terrorism and disaster management arrangements. Further work might establish how these could best be exploited.

2014-15 Review of Local Government Emergency Warning Capability

Warnings

2015 Callide Creek Flood Review

2014-15 Review of Cyclone and Storm Tide Sheltering Arrangements

Evacuation

2015 Callide Creek Flood Review

2014-15 Evaluation of Emergency Management Training and Exercise Arrangements

Exercises and training

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APPENDIX C

Summary of findings from previous IGEM reviews