Is it floodwater, a wet road or just a puddle?

CRC science was covered extensively at the Australia and New Zealand Disaster and Emergency Management conference on the Gold Coast from 12-13 June.

A highlight was a panel session covering the complexities of floodwater, featuring CRC researchers Dr Mel Taylor and Dr Matalena Tofa (Macquarie University) and chaired by CRC Communications Director David Bruce. The panel explored the challenges associated with communicating for floods, and how to best challenge the risk perceptions of the public.

There was pently of other CRC research on the program too, with researcher Dr Michael Eburn (Australian National University) giving a keynote on the legal responsibilities borne by emergency management agencies, Dr Paula Dootson (QUT) presented findings on conflicting cues and avoiding ambiguity in emergency warnings and Andrew Gissing (Risk Frontiers) spoke about planning and preparation for catastrophic disasters. Recently completed students Bill Calcutt (University of Wollongong), Dr Rachel Westcott (Western Sydney University) and Dr Kaitlyn Watson (QUT) also presented their research findings.

2019 was the eighth year of the conference and the fifth time the CRC has been directly affiliated with the event. The conference attracted delegates from across the emergency and disaster management sectors, with the joint CRC, AFAC and AIDR stand once again popular during the breaks.

ANZDMC is a joint initiative of four organisations: the Australian Institute of Emergency Services, the Australian and New Zealand Mental Health Association Inc., the Bushfire and Natural Hazards CRC, and the Association for Sustainability in Business Inc.