Australia: Online warnings when the threat is high

By Costa Haritos

This article first appeared in Fire Australia, Issue 1, 2020. 

In the last decade, the World Health Organisation says 2.6 billion people were affected by natural hazards, with those figures expected to rise in the future. Quick reactions, effective decision-making and sector collaboration are important when a disaster strikes.

The severity and frequency of natural disasters is changing, and so is the way people are accessing public information and warnings when the threat is high. Communities are more readily turning to their mobile devices and social media for assistance during an emergency, especially when electricity and other traditional forms of accessing warnings information are disrupted.

The 2011 Queensland floods saw emergency services, politicians, media and community organisations begin to use platforms like Facebook and Twitter to share real-time information and alert the public about the immediate risks.

But Google and Facebook recently used a more formalised approach during the 2019–20 bushfires, which saw catastrophic bushfire conditions across multiple states.

Both tech giants are using their platforms and working with government agencies and other emergency services partners to deliver real-time assistance and warnings to disaster prone communities.

Kia Wahl is the Head of Crisis Response Partnerships at Google who says people often search online for current warnings information during an emergency.

‘As the fires worsened in November 2019 we saw more people searching for updates,’ Ms Wahl said.

Google currently provides SOS Alerts when people search for a specific area or disaster, and interactive alerts through Google Maps, where users can pinpoint their location and proximity to the nearest bushfire. iPhone and Android users can also receive alerts through text notifications and the Google smartphone application.

‘We want to give people and communities the most relevant information available at the time that they need it most,’ Ms Wahl said.

Australian fire agencies working with Google

As conditions worsened in November 2019, NSW Rural Fire Service (RFS) engaged Google to provide real-time warning information.

The NSW RFS alert feeds are integrated into Google’s Public Alerts, which allows the information to be shared accurately and ensures ‘comprehensive coverage across Australia’, Ms Wahl said.

‘We were quickly able to surface the Public Alerts in Google Search, and used SOS Alerts to provide users with more information,’ she said.

In response to the bushfires across NSW and Queensland in late 2019, Google launched the Safety Tips feature across SOS Alert cards on their Search function. This development helped to communicate key safety advice on a large scale and allowed communities to understand the severity of the fires and take appropriate action.

Google also worked with the South Australia Country Fire Service (CFS) to deliver warnings for residents in South Australia. Ms Wahl said Google is working with many other agencies for a national approach.

‘We are continuing engagement with fire and emergency services across all states to ensure we have national alerts coverage,’ she said.

Other fire and emergency services can partner with Google to share their alerts. Agencies should ensure their alerts follow the Common Alerting Protocol or CAP standard—an international standard for publishing and sharing alerts. This means Google can use a consistent approach to sharing information in an accurate and secure manner.

The Public Alerts using the CAP format are automatically pulled from NSW RFS and SA CFS, with any natural or human-made hazard available for mass circulation.

A worldwide collaboration of agencies is also providing information to Google Public Alerts including Canada, Germany, India and the Philippines.

Where to next?

The team at Google monitors real-time threats and natural hazards across the globe, 24 hours a day and seven days a week.

Facebook is also using its platform to share and prepare communities before, during and after a natural hazard. The social media platform shares tips for response and relief organisations, first responders, government agencies and individuals and communities.

Mia Garlick from Facebook Australia met with communications teams and experts from the emergency services at the Emergency Media and Public Affairs Conference in June 2019 to discuss how the company could support emergency managers, disaster response tools and crisis mapping data.

Ms Garlick shared Facebook’s insights with the AFAC Warnings Group, where she spoke about the critical role of social media in emergencies and enhancing community resilience.

Community and disaster-focused Facebook groups are already a platform for posting eyewitness information, questions, requests for help and advice, establishing support networks within the disaster-affected area and facilitating community engagement and involvement in aid efforts.

The ‘marked as safe’ feature also allows friends to alert each other of their status if they are impacted by a disaster.

At Google, crisis response also extends beyond natural hazards. Fundraising after a disaster, educational media kits, connectivity services for refugees and translations for doctors and aid workers are all part of Google’s strategy for disaster awareness and resilience.

Ms Wahl at Google Australia said these initiatives take existing information and apply it.

‘Emergency services already provide a lot of great information in this space, so by using data from the state-based emergency services we want to make sure that when people come to Google Search and Maps they can access this timely and useful bushfire information,’ she said.

The collaborative approach to warnings undertaken this bushfire season will be discussed in more detail at the AFAC Warnings Group 2020 meetings.

Ms Wahl said Australia-wide coverage could be possible through cross-sector collaboration.

‘Our teams are always looking for ways to better support this important area so that we can provide the most helpful experience to those impacted,’ Ms Wahl said.