🇦🇺 Australia
Last verified: July 2026 — validate with your local authorities during the annual update of the club directory.
1. Emergency numbers
| Service |
Number |
| General emergency (police, fire, ambulance) |
000 (Triple Zero) |
| International standard from a mobile / satellite phone (redirects to 000) |
112 |
| Text emergency relay (deaf / speech impairment, via TTY) |
106 |
| State Emergency Service — storm, flood, non-life-threatening help |
132 500 |
| Poisons Information Centre |
13 11 26 |
Note: 112 gives no priority over 000 and works only from a mobile; there is no advantage to dialling it instead of 000. 106 is for text-only calls from a TTY, not from a standard mobile.
2. National disaster management
| Element |
In Australia |
| Federal agency |
NEMA (National Emergency Management Agency) — nema.gov.au. Formed 1 September 2022 by merging Emergency Management Australia (EMA) and the National Recovery and Resilience Agency; EMA now continues as a function within NEMA |
| Response model |
Emergencies are led at state / territory level; the Commonwealth (NEMA) coordinates national assistance and recovery when a state requests it |
| Territorial crisis authority |
Each state/territory has its combat agencies (fire service, State Emergency Service) and a State Control / Emergency Operations Centre; local government supports evacuation and recovery |
| Citizen preparedness |
Get Ready campaigns (state-based), Australian Warning System (AWS: Advice → Watch and Act → Emergency) |
| Organised volunteering |
State Emergency Service (SES) volunteers, rural/country fire services (CFA, RFS, CFS) — largely volunteer-run; the club can partner with the local unit |
3. Alert systems
| System |
What it is |
Access |
| Emergency Alert |
National telephone warning system — voice + SMS to landlines and mobiles in a defined area |
Automatic |
| Australian Warning System (AWS) |
Standardised three-level national scale (Advice / Watch and Act / Emergency) used across all hazards |
On state agency sites and apps |
| BOM (Bureau of Meteorology) |
Cyclone, flood, severe thunderstorm, heatwave and fire-weather warnings |
bom.gov.au + BOM Weather app |
| State SES (State Emergency Service) |
Flood and storm warnings, sandbagging, rescue |
State SES sites / apps |
| State fire apps |
Fires Near Me (NSW), VicEmergency, etc. — real-time bushfire and total-fire-ban information |
App stores |
| Australian Tsunami Warning System |
Joint BOM / Geoscience Australia tsunami alerts |
bom.gov.au |
4. Key non-Rotary actors
| Actor |
Role in disaster |
| Australian Red Cross |
Evacuation centres, psychosocial support, register-and-find (family reunification) |
| State Emergency Service (SES) |
Flood/storm response, sandbagging, land rescue |
| Rural/Country Fire Service (RFS/CFA/CFS) |
Bushfire suppression, warnings, community education |
| Local council / state emergency management |
The club's institutional contact (evacuation centres, recovery) |
| Salvation Army, St Vincent de Paul, GIVIT |
Meals, distribution, coordinated in-kind giving |
5. Dominant risks → guide cards
| Risk |
Where |
Card to print |
| Bushfire |
South-east and south-west; catastrophic "Black Summer" 2019-20 (>24 M ha burned) |
Card C2 |
| Flood |
Eastern seaboard; major 2022 QLD/NSW floods (Brisbane, Lismore) |
Card B2 |
| Tropical cyclone |
Northern coasts (QLD, NT, WA), Nov-April |
Card B1 |
| Heatwave |
Nationwide — the deadliest natural hazard in Australia by fatalities |
Card B4 |
| Drought |
Inland and agricultural regions (Murray-Darling Basin) |
Card C1 |
| Severe storm / hail |
Nationwide, especially east coast |
Card B2 (flash flood component) |
6. Equivalences with the guide's terms
| Generic term in the guide |
Australian equivalent |
| National disaster management agency |
NEMA (+ state emergency management agencies) |
| National response plan |
National Coordination Mechanism / state emergency management plans |
| Emergency medical service (EMS) |
Ambulance service (via 000) |
| Territorial state authority |
State/territory emergency management + local council |
| Civil-security citizen reserve |
State Emergency Service (SES) volunteers |
| Cell / population alert |
Emergency Alert + Australian Warning System (AWS) |
| Inter-agency coordination |
State Control Centre / National Coordination Mechanism |
Donation tax rules: gifts of AUD 2 or more to an organisation with Deductible Gift Recipient (DGR) status are tax-deductible. Many Rotary club charitable/foundation entities and the Rotary Australia World Community Service (RAWCS) hold DGR endorsement — check that the receiving entity is DGR-listed before promising deductibility to donors.
7. Rotary section — to be completed by your club
| Element |
Your information |
| Rotary district (Australian districts are numbered 9xxx, e.g. 9510, 9620, 9640, 9675, 9685, 9705, 9800, 9910, 9930, 9940, 9980) |
____ |
| District Governor (DG) |
____ |
| District disaster officer (DRO/DRC) |
____ |
| ShelterBox Australia contact |
____ |
| RAWCS / DGR entity for tax-deductible donations |
____ |
| Local SES / council emergency contact |
____ |
| Neighbouring clubs (< 50 km) |
____ |
| Last update of this section |
//______ |
Sources: Triple Zero / ACMA (triplezero.gov.au), NEMA (nema.gov.au), Bureau of Meteorology (bom.gov.au), Australian Red Cross, Wikipedia "National Emergency Management Agency (Australia)". Report any error: g.bourgogne.rtn@gmail.com