The Federal Government's ability to respond to natural disasters or acts of terrorism is set to improve after Australia's new Crisis Coordination Centre was opened in Canberra yesterday.
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Attorney-General Robert McClelland said the completion of the state-of-the-art centre would significantly enhance the Government's ability to respond to emergencies such as grass fires, flooding and cyclones, as Australians headed into a ''busy few months''. The centre has been operating on an interim basis since September last year.
Mr McClelland said staff handled difficult situations such the Queensland floods, Tropical Cyclone Yasi and the Victorian floods despite not having state-of-the-art facilities.
The new centre in the Attorney-General's Department was established as a result of recommendations from the 2008 Homeland and Border Security Review.
The review suggested ''a whole-of-government approach to managing crisis''.
Mr McClelland said the centre connected Commonwealth, state and territory agencies to centralise Australian government actions during conflicts and national emergencies.
''It does this to develop in real time a single and consistent understanding of a crisis, its implications and our national capability to respond,'' he said.
''As the bushfire and disaster season approaches, this new facility will be a welcome boost to our capabilities over summer.''
Risks to Australia and Australians are monitored 24 hours a day, seven days a week, by employees in the $14million purpose-built centre.
During normal times, 22 government officers watch for emerging threats within Australia and internationally.
The centre has capacity for up to 100 officers during crisis situations. ''Risks include everything from natural to man-made disasters, also to security and cyber threats,'' Mr McClelland said.
