During the 2015 South Australian fires, the Department for Communities and Social Inclusion (DCSI) leveraged the latest advancements in Geographic Information System (GIS) technology to strengthen mitigation, response and recovery efforts.

In essence, GIS technology was key to ensuring critical intelligence was delivered to decision makers at a time when bushfire-affected communities were at their most vulnerable.

Using GIS technology, DCSI was able to rapidly digest and consolidate multiple datasets within hours of the start of the fires, to create a multi-agency smart map. The map integrated large volumes of information – such as crowd-sourced data, government datasets and near real-time fire information – to provide the State Recovery Committee (SRO) with a much-needed ‘single point of truth’.

This rich portal of information, accessible from any device, anywhere, provided stakeholders with the intelligence needed to make timely and accurate decisions. For example, the SRO could understand the community tapestry across the affected area, who had lost property, where these affected families registered for assistance, and, as a result, allowing each stakeholder of the SRO to allocate resources as required.

DCSI also shared online maps with the broader community that revealed the location of volunteers ready to help post fires, as well as the growing footprint of the bushfire.

As the recovery efforts continue today, the technology is being used to provide new insight into areas in need of ongoing support. DCSI is advancing the use of GIS in the development of a fully integrated, rapid-damage assessment (RDA) tool, due to be released at the beginning of the next fire season.

In this presentation, DCSI will share its experiences, learnings and the journey they have taken to break down the silos and provide information in a global context to facilitate a more timely coordinated approach to emergency management.