The role of Surf Life Saving in tsunami warning and management

Surf Life Saving (SLS) has over 37,500 active members and more than 1,000 lifeguards around Australia. They are based at more than 400 Surf Life Saving Clubs.

SLS works closely with council lifeguard services in managing Australia's beaches. SLS is the authority on beach management should a tsunami occur on the Australian coastline. SLS has the capacity to assist by:

• warning the beach-going public through its communication points around the coastline, including the public address system; and
• providing adequate rescue and emergency care, through the active membership volunteer and professional surf lifesaving clubs and support operation services.

Below are the delegated State Emergency Authorities (SEA) in each state/territory:

• Queensland - Emergency Management Queensland (EMQ)
• New South Wales - State Emergency Service (NSW SES)
• Victoria - State Emergency Service (Vic SES)
• Tasmania - Police
• Western Australia - Fire and Emergency Services Authority (FESA)
• Northern Territory - Police Fire and Emergency Services (PFES)

The SEA in each state/territory will have the overall responsibility of coordinating and managing the response to a tsunami warning. The SEA may also delegate particular responsibilities to SLS, such as warning the community or assisting in rescue and recovery. It is important that SLS should act upon its Tsunami Response Plan (for more information see Surf Life Saving response) only after it has been asked to do so by the relevant SEA. It is not SLS's responsibility to determine if a tsunami warning should be issued or not, with subsequent plans put in place.

The Bureau of Meteorology (the Bureau) is the delegated authority to issue a tsunami warning. The SEA then determines what level of response should be taken by relevant authorities, such as SLS.

Important:
According to the Tsunami Response Plan, the Area Director of Lifesaving is responsible for starting or ending all actions taken by a lifesaving service. If you, as a lifesaving service member/employee, hear of a tsunami warning in the media, confirm with your direct supervisor before beginning a surf lifesaving action plan. However, where television, radio or the like is providing instructions on general public safety, please follow accordingly.