Emergency alerts lost on Australia's multicultural communities

For many multicultural communities in Australia, emergency alerts and warnings remain largely ineffective, failing to reach those who need them most. Koos Ali, who grew up in Somalia where communities relied on each other during natural disasters, found Australian emergencies a "whole learning process" upon migrating.

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We have learnt to make sure if anything happens we have a community approach and we don't wait for the government

"When there's war, there are bullets. You can run, you can hide," Ali said. "But when it comes to Australian disasters, it's a whole learning process. It's a totally different approach." She recalled the Black Summer bushfires of 2019-20, where the danger became real only when colleagues were evacuated from their homes. "Seeing it happening makes a huge difference [compared] to all the pamphlets that I'd read," she added.

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When there's war, there are bullets. You can run, you can hide. But when it comes to Australian disasters, it's a whole learning process. It's a totally different approach.

Ali, now a settlement support officer for Gippsland Multicultural Services (GMS), works to promote emergency preparedness within culturally and linguistically diverse communities. GMS has established the Gippsland Multicultural Regional Emergency Management Network to help mainstream agencies, like firefighters and police, better understand and connect with these communities. This initiative aims to create a vital link between official emergency messaging and the lived experiences of multicultural residents.

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That's when you understand what it means to be prepared. Seeing it happening makes a huge difference [compared] to all the pamphlets that I'd read.

Kate Allen, an access and support officer at GMS, noted that newcomers may not understand common emergency phrases. "No-one understands [Watch and Act]. Watch who act?" she questioned, illustrating the confusion over official instructions. Allen explained that without familiarity, these systems are meaningless. "The government is doing an amazing job by providing this information, but there is also a missing link explaining what this information means for your street, for your house, for your daily life," she stated. Allen also pointed out that some migrant communities harbor distrust towards authorities due to past trauma, further complicating communication efforts.

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No-one understands [Watch and Act]. Watch who act? Should we be packing a bag or leaving the house? Or stand outside to watch the sky, or just listen to the radio for the whole night?