Nat u r al Disast er s
16. Nat u r al Disast er s
16.1. Typ es o f n at u r al d isast er s
16.1.1. Natural disasters may include, but are not limited to:
i. Floods
ii. Cyclones or other significant weather events
iii. Bushfires iv. Earthquakes v. Volcanoes vi. Tsunamis
16.2. Nat u r al d isast er s – Crit ical Incid ent s
16.2.1. Any natural disaster in Australia that affects awardees should be considered
a critical incident.
16.3. Nat u r al d isast er s – Welf are Incid ent s
16.3.1. Any natural disaster in the home country or region of awardees should be considered a welfare incident.
16.3.2. When a natural disaster occurs, the responsibilities of awardees, institutions and DFAT are different to other welfare or critical incidents. The appropriate processes are outlined in this chapter.
16.4. Nat u r al d isast er s in Au st r alia
16.4.1. Any natural disaster in Australia that affects awardees should be considered
a critical incident.
16.4.2. If a natural disaster affects, or is predicted to affect, any campus that is hosting awardees the following responsibilities apply.
16.4.3. All affected awardees must make contact with their Student Contact Officer
as soon as possible.
16.4.4. Institutions must:
i. consider the wellbeing of awardees and any accompanying family members as paramount. This includes ensuring affected individuals:
o have safe and secure accommodation o have access to information regarding emergency relief funding where
appropriate/available o have access to counselling services o are able to return to their studies with minimum disruption.
ii. notify the Scholarships and Alumni Branch immediately when it becomes aware of
a natural disaster
iii. prepare a group critical incident report to DFAT noting: o the number of affected awardees
o the status (e.g. health, wellbeing and location) of all awardees o the anticipated disruption to the academic year o if there is prior warning of a natural disaster, what steps are being taken to
ensure the welfare of affected awardees o if at all possible, the report template included at Appendix C should be used.
iv. continue to monitor the situation, keep up-to-date records of the natural disaster and its implications for awardees
v. report regularly to the Scholarships and Alumni Branch.
16.4.5. If there is prior warning of a natural disaster, notification should be by phone and email and should follow the standard procedure for notification of any critical incident as outlined in Section 15.3 of this document.
16.4.6. If there is no prior warning and the natural disaster affects electricity or telecommunications infrastructure, DFAT will accept non-standard notification. However, DFAT does expect all affected institutions to make contact with the Scholarships Advisory Desk as soon as possible.
16.5. Nat u r al d isast er s in an aw ar d ee ’s hom e count ry
16.5.1. Any natural disaster in an awardee’s home country or region should be considered a welfare incident.
16.5.2. If a natural disaster affects, or is predicted to affect, an awardee’s home country or region the following responsibilities apply.
16.5.3. If you are conducting fieldwork outside Australia in an area that
experiences a natural disaster please contact your Student Contact Officer immediately.
16.5.4. If you are concerned about the welfare of friends and family in your home country DFAT advises you to speak to your Student Contact Officer.
16.5.5. If you are scheduled to return to your home country within 14 days of a natural disaster please contact your Student Contact Officer to confirm your travel arrangements.
16.5.6. If any awardees are conducting fieldwork outside Australia in an area that
experiences a natural disaster, DFAT should be notified as per the processes outlined in Section 14.2 .
16.5.7. If an awardee reports to their Student Contact Officer concerns about natural disasters overseas, DFAT should be notified as per the processes outlined in Section 14.2 .
16.5.8. Facilitate the provision of support to any affected awardees and any accompanying family members (where possible).
16.5.9. Support may include access to counselling services.
16.5.10. If necessary, intervene early with the awardee and discuss options such as altered study plans, tutoring or short-term suspensions to allow the awardee to successfully manage their study load during a difficult time.
16.5.11. If an awardee is due to return to their home country within 14 days of a natural disaster contact the Program Area to confirm it is safe for the awardee to return.
16.5.12. If necessary, following consultation with DFAT , institutions may approve an awardee’s use of a Reunion Airfare entitlement in advance to enable the awardee to return home on compassionate grounds for a short period of time.
16.5.13. The use of the Reunion Airfare entitlement for this purpose should be noted in the OASIS journal.
16.5.14. The awardee and institution will need to agree on the period of absence. In some cases, it may be more appropriate for the institution to suspend the scholarship.
16.5.15. If travel is restricted or considered unsafe the Program Area should contact the Scholarships and Alumni Branch as soon as possible so that this
information can be passed on to awardees in Australia.
16.5.16. If advised by the Program Area that travel is restricted or considered unsafe for awardees to return, pass this information on to all relevant institutions.