In Western Australia, the State Emergency Management Committee (SEMC) has the authority to develop policy and arrangements for management of emergency/disaster situations.
SEMC have developed Policy Statement No 7 that outlines the arrangements and the roles of various agencies.
Under Policy Statement No 7, the Department for Community Development has a support role to provide welfare services and to manage three state level plans that outline the arrangements for provision of those services:
Welfare services provided for under the plans include:
Emergency accommodation
The provision of temporary shelter for persons rendered homeless, and where necessary, the allocation of more permanent accommodation.
Emergency catering
The establishment of an emergency catering service for the homeless, evacuees, casualties and welfare workers.
Emergency clothing and personal requisites
The provision of essential clothing and personal requisites, such as toiletry packs, to affected persons.
Personal services
The provision of services which ensure that affected persons receive the necessary personal support to cope with the affects of loss, stress, confusion and family disruption, as well as providing a wide range of information and advice services.
Registration and inquiry
The implementation of a registration and inquiry system, which provides for individuals to be traced, families reunited and inquiries answered.
Financial assistance
The provision of financial assistance including personal hardship and distress relief payments, disaster relief payments, special benefits and other forms of emergency assistance to those who are eligible and in need.
The Department is assisted to provide welfare services by several other agencies and non government organisations to ensure that Western Australians are supported to recover from disasters and maintain control of their lives.
The Department's role in emergency management is coordinated by the emergency services coordinator who can be contacted on 9277 0366.
The State Welfare Emergency Management Support Plan (PDF, 126kb) describes the organisational structure and operational network for the delivery of welfare services in the event of a large scale emergency or disaster. This plan is intended to be implemented in the event that local resources and plans are unable to cope with the needs of the situation and seek State level assistance.
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The State Registration and Inquiry Emergency Management Plan (PDF, 892kb) has been developed to facilitate the accounting of persons affected by emergencies whereby people are evacuated, in the event of a major aircraft accident, buildings collapse, fire, flood etc.
The plan is activated at the state level by the state welfare coordinator based on an assessment of the situation and in consultation with the state emergency coordinator and/or the relevant hazard management agency.
At local level the registration and inquiry arrangements are activated and implemented by the Department's local welfare coordinator in consultation with the local emergency coordinator and/or designated hazard management agency.
National Registration and Inquiry System (NRIS) - Registration Form
The registration form is used for the process of accurately recording appropriate details of all persons affected by an emergency whether they are evacuated or remain in the affected area and from which a state register can be compiled.
National Registration Form (PDF, 89kb)
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The State Reception of Evacuees from Overseas Emergency Management Plan (PDF, 63kb) is concerned with the control and coordination of reception operations in Western Australia following the evacuation of Australian citizens and other approved persons should the security situation in foreign countries deteriorate.
Reception operations are conducted as a Commonwealth-State partnership, with Emergency Management Australia (EMA) acting as the lead federal agency and Department for Community Development acting as the lead state agency. Responsibility for establishing and managing reception arrangements as well as providing welfare services belongs to Department for Community Development.
This plan deals only with the reception, welfare processing and relocation of evacuees. Transportation of evacuees to the Perth metropolitan area will normally be conducted by the Australian Defence Force.
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