Australians in disaster zones to receive phone alerts to improve emergency response

People in disaster zones will receive urgent phone alerts with warnings and advice, as the federal government plans to begin testing of a new emergency messaging system for fires, floods and public safety crises.

The new system will give prominent mobile notifications on phone screens that users cannot accidentally overlook, with an official alert from the government which cannot be mistaken for a scam text.

The system will be designed and tested over the next 18 months, ahead of an anticipated launch in late 2024.

Some Australians are likely to receive test alerts during that period, with a public awareness campaign to also be rolled out.

Government sources said that process would also determine how state and territory agencies could feed into the messaging system, and whether it would ultimately replace the emergency warning systems run by the states.