Author Topic: Bushfire Alert (Read 8991 times)

Tone7 · « **on:** October 31, 2006, 10:04:10 PM »

Dear Users.

As some of you might be aware of the bushfire alert system that Skunkworks Australia has brought out.

I'll explain a little.

About Bushfire Alert

Bushfire alert enables communities to send and receive early warning alerts when a bushfire occurs in their area. Voice alert messages are sent to your work, home, and mobile phones, and text alert messages are sent to your email and sms, making you aware of the bushfire regardless of where you are at the time so you can make an immediate decision on what action to take. it can take up to an hour calling all your neighbors about a fire, valuable time that could be spent evacuating or fire-fighting, and potentially dangerous for the last people receiving a call. Bushfire alert calls your entire community for you quickly and easily at the early stage of the fire, giving you a better chance of protecting your property and helping your family to survive.

Who makes the phone call to report the bushfire?
If you see a fire in your that has not yet been reported, then you make the phone call to your community bushfire alert number.

Will the local fire authority initiate the alerts?
No. Bushfire alerts are activated by you and your community.

What number do i call to report a bushfire?
In all cases you much call your emergency services first, typically 000. Then call your dedicated community bushfire alert number that we provide to you when your service has been activated.

What happens when i report a bushfire?
The system will as you to leave a message about the fire such as where it is heading and what action you are going to take and what fire authority has been notified. The system confirms to you that your message will be sent.

What does it cost.
$25 per year for each property including GST. Each property can register multiple delivery methods such as the home, work and mobile phones to receive voice alerts, and email and SMS to receive text alerts.

How do i form a new community.
Gather a list of interested properties in your area and send them to us and we will activate your community immediately; or register your property individually with us and we will contact you when there is a sufficient number of properties in your area to activate that community.

For more information please visit

www.bushfirealert.com.au

Tone7 · « **Reply #1 on:** October 31, 2006, 10:14:52 PM »

What % of people carry a radio around with them??

Why are CFS still in the dark ages???

What is CFS's back up for when a Fire takes out a radio station transmitter to the community? How will they get there message across?

how many people carry a mobile phone?

how many people are near a landline?

how many people are sitting in front of a computer?

Do i need to say anymore, if some one in SHQ is reading this post PULL YOUR FINGER OUT. Sorry but seriously get in the 21st century or stand down and let some one else do your job.

CFS has been approached on this idea.... guess what... oh its not 100% fail safe... is anything?? Oh there are legal issue, we are too scared boohoo... poor poor poor me another drink.....

So P&*#@ED off that CFS wont support this. local community shouldn't be ringing the Bushfire alerts number and reporting something CFS should be doing this when it goes out on the radio, as a back up and also to reach all them 100's of people that don't have a radio strapped to their ear.

By the way Port Lincoln and Nth Shields are being turned on next week... cant wait... the rest of the LEP will be turned on soon as we get more people joined up...

Pixie · « **Reply #2 on:** October 31, 2006, 10:21:06 PM »

Sounds like a good idea, anything that can/will give the public more of a heads up about a fire is good in my books!!

bajdas · « **Reply #3 on:** October 31, 2006, 11:24:41 PM »

How does the system protect from pranksters and false reports. I would hate to move the family for someone who has logged a call has a joke

SA Firey · « **Reply #4 on:** November 01, 2006, 09:00:09 AM »

Quote from: Linc24p on October 31, 2006, 10:14:52 PM

What % of people carry a radio around with them??

Why are CFS still in the dark ages???

What is CFS's back up for when a Fire takes out a radio station transmitter to the community? How will they get there message across?

how many people carry a mobile phone?

how many people are near a landline?

how many people are sitting in front of a computer?

Do i need to say anymore, if some one in SHQ is reading this post PULL YOUR FINGER OUT. Sorry but seriously get in the 21st century or stand down and let some one else do your job.

CFS has been approached on this idea.... guess what... oh its not 100% fail safe... is anything?? Oh there are legal issue, we are too scared boohoo... poor poor poor me another drink.....

So P&*#@ED off that CFS wont support this. local community shouldn't be ringing the Bushfire alerts number and reporting something CFS should be doing this when it goes out on the radio, as a back up and also to reach all them 100's of people that don't have a radio strapped to their ear.

By the way Port Lincoln and Nth Shields are being turned on next week... cant wait... the rest of the LEP will be turned on soon as we get more people joined up...

You have answered so many of your own questions but what about the vision impaired and deaf members of the public.

People pay their ESL and shouldnt have to pay for a private service,but also we cant be held accountable for the apathy of the public either,with the "It will never happen to me attitude"

Bushfire Alert · « **Reply #5 on:** November 01, 2006, 01:52:36 PM »

Excellent question of BAJDAS on hoax calls.

Bushfire Alert allocates a dedicated fire reporting phone number for each community. We currently have about 1,000 numbers pre-allocated across Australia which is increased on demand.

The system accepts fire reporting calls from all registered phone numbers for that community, the system then progresses immediately to begin broadcasting the alert voice calls, SMS and email messages. In the case where the call originates from a non-registered phone number then the call may be intervened.

The system does take hoax calls into account, however we do not publish the exact nature of this process and I trust that you understand the reasoning for this position.

Feedback from our live communities using the system confirm that they prefer to get messages than have no messages as was their situation before Bushfire Alert.

Regards, Bill
Bushfire Alert.

CFS_Firey · « **Reply #6 on:** November 01, 2006, 04:46:45 PM »

Bill, what sort of response have you had from Fire Services around Australia? Would you ever provide the communities' local fire brigade with the number, to use at their discretion?

SA Firey · « **Reply #7 on:** November 01, 2006, 05:54:53 PM »

Quote from: CFS_Firey on November 01, 2006, 04:46:45 PM

Bill, what sort of response have you had from Fire Services around Australia? Would you ever provide the communities' local fire brigade with the number, to use at their discretion?

Under the Privacy Act, they would need a signed document from the person concerned to release that information to a third party.

Unlike the 000 CLI data which is passed on to Emergency Services under legislation...see hisory of 000 here
http://www.emergencycalls.aca.gov.au/history.htm

Bushfire Alert · « **Reply #8 on:** November 01, 2006, 05:57:03 PM »

Dear CFS_FIREY

The fire authorities that have contacted us have been positive and supportive and some have helped to form BFA communities. This has progressed such that we have now also added a feature to enable command group leaders to receive the alerts - they receive additional information about which community the alert is from, as well as the standard information about the fire.

We would be happy to cooperate with fire authorities and for them to initiate the alerts. This was our original proposition some years back and remains open.

It is important to note the the BFA system is designed to complement existing fire authority communications and in no way interfere or replace them. Our focus is to provide information about fires to communities however there is obvious overlap as volunteer fire fighters also are an integral part of any community.

Regards Bill

CFS_Firey · « **Reply #9 on:** November 01, 2006, 06:07:44 PM »

Quote

Under the Privacy Act, they would need a signed document from the person concerned to release that information to a third party.

I meant the number communities ring to report a fire, not the number of the person who reported one... (In other words, being a "member" of the communities surrounding their station, without having to pay the registration fee).

Bill Answered my question, thanks!

Bushfire Alert · « **Reply #10 on:** November 01, 2006, 06:24:09 PM »

Dear CFS_Firey

For a fire authority to initiate an alert, yes it would require special cooperation.

Good point on the Privacy issues, this is one of the main reasons why the BFA service is offered as an 'opt in' service to initiate and receive alerts.

Being community and opt-in based, any BFA community member can initiate an alert regardless of their occupation or membership with any other service or system.

Regards Bill

Robert-Robert34 · « **Reply #11 on:** November 01, 2006, 08:26:37 PM »

Wasnt a bushfire alert system designed to alert people with a pre recorded message by ringing their phone number launched a few years ago cause i do remember signing up for something like that

Bushfire Alert · « **Reply #12 on:** November 02, 2006, 03:17:45 AM »

Dear Robert34

You are correct, I have found your enquiry record on our system, although this was only earlier this year. Time flies!

The BFA system plays the message left by the caller, not a pre-recorded or 'canned' message. In this way people are alerted plus they gain information about the fire.

Robert we would be delighted to help you activate BFA for your local community. Your area requires additional properties to sign up to activate BFA for that area, this is a practical requirement, not financial. Would you like some information packs for you and your neighbours? Due to privacy legislation and other factors, to receive fire alerts people and communities need to pro-actively take this on and opt-in, nothing will come to those who wait. Please don't hesitate to contact me direct if we can help you in any way.

Regards Bill

Tone7 · « **Reply #13 on:** November 03, 2006, 09:15:03 PM »

Yesterday 2nd of Nov i tested Lincoln and Nth shields bush fire alerts and they worked sweet.

Two of the many towns will be enabled this fire season.

bajdas · « **Reply #14 on:** November 03, 2006, 11:36:34 PM »

I hope the people signing for the system & paying money do not have a impression that this is the only way they will receive communication about any major emergency incident in their area.

Any major emergency incident will result in communication disruption & I do not believe (after many years of publicity) that many people have battery powered radios.

Having a multi-faceted system of informing people (via media, info telephone lines, websites, etc) will provide accurate & timely information as the incident goes on.

The first alert is required, but if this is 30 minutes old it could be inaccurate. The updated information on a emergency incident should be from the primary combatintant authority because the incident changes very quickly.

Bushfire Alert · « **Reply #15 on:** November 04, 2006, 07:50:23 PM »

Dear Andrew

Thank you for your comments.

Bushfire Alert system complements the information provided on the CFS website and ABC radio.

People are well aware that the CFS and the ABC provide valuable information in severe fire situations. Our literature also emphasises this message such as 'once alerted and in a severe fire situation please tune into the ABC radio for further updates'.

Bushfire Alert is used to provide the initial alert plus key updates, however as mentioned we recommend to tune into the ABC radio in a severe fire situation.

It is important to note that many bushfires are not reported on the CFS website or on the ABC radio, however these fires are important to people in the area of the fire. The CFS media message says "it is up to you", and the Bushfire Alert system enables people to do just that - it empowers communities to take control of their own situation just as the CFS media messages recommends to do.

The Bushfire Alert system enables communities to send and receive information on ALL fires in their area hence addresses a need that is not fulfilled by any other means, thereby complementing the other sources of information.

We have ofered the primary combatant authority the use of our services to get information out to the public for some years now, however this has not been taken up.

We share your responsible concern with the lack of battery powered radios, our market research supports this concern. Perhaps there is more that could be done to get this message across to the public, I am happy to discuss these themes further if you wish to contact me direct.

Regards Bill
Bushfire Alert.

Robert-Robert34 · « **Reply #16 on:** November 04, 2006, 08:45:19 PM »

Quote from: bajdas on November 03, 2006, 11:36:34 PM

I hope the people signing for the system & paying money do not have a impression that this is the only way they will receive communication about any major emergency incident in their area.

Any major emergency incident will result in communication disruption & I do not believe (after many years of publicity) that many people have battery powered radios.

Having a multi-faceted system of informing people (via media, info telephone lines, websites, etc) will provide accurate & timely information as the incident goes on.

The first alert is required, but if this is 30 minutes old it could be inaccurate. The updated information on a emergency incident should be from the primary combatintant authority because the incident changes very quickly.

You are right about one thing bajdas with any major emergency there will always be communications disruptions which can cause people to panic if they dont know whats going on

With this new bushfire alert system it can give communities a heads up about whats coming their way and how bad it is so they have alot of time to prepare or evacuate im hoping that my town has the bushfire alert up and running real soon as it will save alot of lives this year

Ryan · « **Reply #17 on:** November 04, 2006, 08:52:08 PM »

how about sending warnings over VHF/UHF radio for farmers and truckies at work when they might not be able to get to their phone and distract themselevs. A message over the radio they can listen to might be more feasible?

Robert-Robert34 · « **Reply #18 on:** November 04, 2006, 08:57:30 PM »

Quote from: Ryan on November 04, 2006, 08:52:08 PM

how about sending warnings over VHF/UHF radio for farmers and truckies at work when they might not be able to get to their phone and distract themselevs. A message over the radio they can listen to might be more feasible?

The bushfire warning phases which are put over AM/FM radio stations in the event of a major fire are also broadcasted over UHF Channel 5 to alert farmers & truck drivers who monitor that channel

Please no one scold me for answering this question

as im only trying to help Ryan out

Ryan · « **Reply #19 on:** November 04, 2006, 09:00:19 PM »

Cheers Robert, thats a good idea. Do many farmers/truckies now that channel5 is a bushfire alert channel? Or is that an emergency channel that boradcasts any issues going on?

Robert-Robert34 · « **Reply #20 on:** November 04, 2006, 09:10:41 PM »

Yes there are a few farmers & truck drivers who monitor channel 5 as they might have one or more UHF radios in their vehicle monitoring channel 5 and monitoring another channel

But it all depends on the area take for instance the Lower South East where i live, farmers down here monitor channel 5 while doing any sort of harvesting operations on a hot day and in the event of something going wrong they can radio for help if their mobile phone isnt on them

If you want more info just PM me ok

and i'll give you my email address

5271rescue · « **Reply #21 on:** November 05, 2006, 01:09:35 PM »

look how many warning systems do we really need?? wont the public be more confused.

Ryan · « **Reply #22 on:** November 05, 2006, 05:09:46 PM »

Do the public evenm know about them. The only bushfire warning I knew of was commerical radio.

Pipster · « **Reply #23 on:** November 05, 2006, 06:07:39 PM »

But do you have a UHF radio? If not, it is not something you would / should be necessarily aware of.....

Some time ago, I was doing some updates on brigade contacts, and found that the alarm number for a number of brigades was actually the Captain's home phone number. I thought that was a bit sad, for one person to be the emergency phone contact point for the brigade, so I spoke to a Captain, and asked how it worked.

Everyone in the district (CFS members, plus everyone else!) all had UHF radios - in their tractors / farm equipment, in their private vehicles, in their houses. If a fire started anywhere within the district, the first person who spotted a fire called it in on UHF, and the whole district knew immediately......

Obviously, this sort of system won't work everywhere, but in the more rural / primary producer area, can work quite well.....

Pip

Smokeydk · « **Reply #24 on:** November 05, 2006, 06:10:16 PM »

I found this Site recently for ABC

http://abc.net.au/reception/freq/

Poll

Should CFS also alert public using the Bushfire Alert System

Author Topic: Bushfire Alert (Read 8991 times)