A joint emergency response by five local councils during one of the most severe weather events in Victorian history has redefined how regional organisations can work together to save property and lives, a new study has found.
The councils in northern Victoria (part of the Northern Victorian Emergency Management Cluster) activated a shared response during the 2022 floods, which included the operation of a major emergency relief centre and the establishment of a field hospital in Bendigo.This lasted for two weeks and accommodated evacuees from Campaspe Shire.
The Strengthening Collaborative Emergency Management Report, led by La Trobe University in partnership with the councils and released this week, shows the regions were better able to address local needs during emergencies when they combined resources and worked together.
But the report said emergency funding systems needed to be set up to support, rather than hinder, collaboration. This was seen as particularly important as climate change drives an increase in the intensity, frequency and scale of disasters.
Dr Lisa de Kleyn, lead researcher from La Trobe's Climate Change Adaptation Lab, said the collaborative effort by Campaspe Shire, Central Goldfields Shire, City of Greater Bendigo, Loddon Shire and Mount Alexander Shire councils helped ease pressure by addressing resource gaps, worker burnout, complex community needs and the growing strain of responding to frequent disasters.
"Many councils were managing both flood response and recovery simultaneously, while their own emergency staff were directly impacted by floodwaters," Dr de Kleyn said.
"This model of collaboration, deep local knowledge and mutual trust enabled the councils to deliver a level of care and coordination no single council could achieve alone."
At its peak, the Emergency Relief Centre at Bendigo Showgrounds housed more than 280 evacuees, providing medical support, hot meals, laundry services and trauma-informed assistance.
Loddon Shire Council was one of the smallest and hardest-hit municipalities, reporting $36 million in essential asset damage, $100 million crop losses and the death of 3500 livestock.
Wendy Gladman, Director of Community Wellbeing at Loddon Shire Council, said many in the community had experienced the 2011 flood event, which informed the decision making eleven years later.
"Local knowledge matters. Decisions during an emergency are not only about logistics; they must reflect the specific needs of our community," Wendy said.
"The Cluster meant we weren't alone; we could call on each other and ask for help. That trust and network support were invaluable."
While the report highlighted the Cluster's strength in responding to critical situations, it said local governments required greater investment, stability, clarity and whole-of organisation support.
It also recommended emergency management received more support as a long-term career path; that funding systems were more responsive and that legislation enabled, rather than hindered, collaboration.
Ashley Fletcher, second author of the report and Graduate Researcher at La Trobe, said this was particularly important in aiding the effects of climate change.
"This research shows that locally driven partnerships like the Northern Victoria Emergency Management Cluster are not only effective, but essential to improving preparedness, response and recovery," Ashley said.
"However, stronger institutional support is needed to amplify the benefits of collaborative arrangements."
As one participant reflected, at the heart of all emergency management is a simple truth: "it's for that resilience, that response and that recovery of actual people".
- Link to report: Strengthening Collaboration in Emergency Management.
- Case studies and flood photos available on request.
