On Monday the 16th of June, the New South Wales State Emergency Service participated in Exercise Ausnami, which a simulated a magnitude 9.0 earthquake in the Pacific that would affect the east coast of Australia.
Mr Whan welcomed the findings on the exercise announced today by Federal Attorney-General, Robert McClelland, saying that they reaffirmed the New South Wales State Emergency Service had the capacity to quickly respond to the threat of a tsunami.
“The SES is the designated NSW combat agency responsible for tsunami,” he said.
“The Service’s roles include leading the development of NSW warning systems, developing education programs, controlling response operations and directing necessary evacuations.”
Mr Whan said that the SES was responsible for the development of the NSW Tsunami Plan, as a sub-plan of the NSW Disaster Plan, and has been a consistent and committed participant in the Australian Tsunami Working Group for four years.
“The success of the exercise shows the SES is able to work effectively with other key agencies involved with tsunami including Geoscience Australia, the Bureau of Meteorology and the Federal Attorney-General’s Department in managing the potential impacts of a tsunami,” he said.
“Members of the New South Wales community can be assured that in the unlikely event of a tsunami affecting the coastline that the SES has the capacity to respond to major natural disasters, as demonstrated by their response to the recent flooding on the North Coast of New South Wales.”
Media contact: Garth Montgomery 0408 864 851
