The former Edith Cowan University Mt Lawley campus and Stirling Leisure were transformed into a disaster zone as emergency crews, volunteers and local governments staged a large-scale mock tornado exercise.
Exercise Overview
The exercise was designed to test Perth’s emergency response capabilities, with collapsed buildings, injured residents and a livestock truck crash forming part of the realistic scenario that unfolded over two days. The second day of the exercise, held at Stirling Leisure on Monday, focused on welfare and recovery.
Agencies Involved
The City of Stirling joined forces with emergency services and neighbouring councils in preparation for storm season. The exercise involved the Department of Fire and Emergency Services, WA Police, the State Emergency Service, St John WA, the Department of Communities, the Department of Transport, Western Power, Central Regional TAFE, the Australian Red Cross, the Salvation Army, and staff from the cities of Stirling, Vincent, Bayswater, Nedlands and Swan.
Scenario Details
Dozens of community volunteers played the role of casualties and missing residents after a fictional tornado tore through the area, prompting search and rescue operations by SES crews at the former university site on Sunday, May 3. Community safety officers from multiple local governments were called in to manage domestic animals and livestock caught up in the fictional disaster.
Recovery Coordination
City of Stirling acting CEO Michael Quirk also chaired a series of local recovery coordination group meetings designed to simulate the days, weeks and months following a major natural disaster. The meetings went into detail on how different agencies would coordinate communication, resources and recovery efforts as the long-term impacts unfolded.
Evaluation and Outcomes
Evaluators observed each stage and identified lessons and improvements, with the findings to be put into the city’s emergency management planning. “This was about testing our ability to collaborate with emergency services during the response and recovery phases of an emergency,” City of Stirling deputy mayor Karlo Perkov said. “It was an incredibly valuable learning experience for us, and I want to thank all of our partner agencies for investing their time and effort into this exercise. I also want to make special mention of the volunteers from our community who brought it all to life by playing the roles of casualties and other people affected by the tornado.”
Funding
The exercise was coordinated by the City of Stirling and funded through a State Government AWARE grant.
