Risk Wise

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were responsible for their safety, but were nonetheless inadequately

prepared. Different groups require different community education

approaches, which adds complexity as they are not always discrete,

easily identifiable groups. However, the active community involve-

ment in the preparation of the

Tamborine Mountain Escarpment

Management Plan

indicates that the community may be a resource

for fire services, necessitating further education of the fire services

themselves.

Community education: Children’s needs

for Tropical Cyclone Education - Stormwatchers

Effective disaster mitigation requires community education and

awareness. Emergency managers have formerly seen communities

as the adult population of a geographical location, but the most

immediate subgroup of any community is its children. The Centre

for Disaster Studies recognized children as a separate community

group when analysing vulnerability to cyclones in the northern

beaches suburbs of Cairns, in North Queensland during the mid

1990s. Internationally, the significance of children’s involvement in

disasters has been recognized by the United Nations as part of chil-

dren’s rights.

In many countries hazard education modules form

part of formal school curricula. The importance of hazard education

for children received further impetus after so many children died in

the Indian Ocean tsunami, and was addressed in the Hyogo

Declaration.

Researchers have shared findings of projects aimed at

children’s experiences in disaster and the importance of

educating children for hazard awareness.

After Tropical

Cyclone Larry devastated small communities to the south

of Cairns in North Queensland in March 2006, a group

of schoolteachers and mothers gathered children’s stories

of the cyclone and their survival as a means of aiding the

recovery of the children by encouraging communication

and the sharing of experiences. Cyclone Larry crossed

the Coral Sea in mid-March 2006, developing into a

severe category five as it approached the coast south of

Cairns, devastating the small towns of Innisfail and

Babinda and surrounding small rural settlements.

There are distinct phases to each cyclone that engage

the community. The precursor to many cyclones is the

development of the monsoon trough and of tropical low-

pressure systems, frequently bringing rain before the

storm develops. People become aware and once the

cyclone forms and is named, the watch intensifies.

During this period of increasing tension people make

preparations and clear up rubbish, but carry on life as

normal. After Cyclone Larry the Centre for Disaster

Studies carried out a household survey which addressed

this pre-impact period in order to understand prepara-

tory behaviour and the receipt of warning information.

Community engagement: Weather Matters in Indigenous Communities Workshop and Evaluation Report

Image: David Lowe (Cottrell, A., Lowe, D., & Spillman, M. 2008)