New campaign to help flood evacuations in Sydney

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New campaign to help flood evacuations in Sydney

A new information campaign to help communities in Sydney's north-west deal with a flood crisis will help keep them safe, said the NSW State Emergency ServiceNSW State Emergency Service SES Commissioner.

From tomorrow, messages in Arabic, Cantonese, Farsi, Korean, Mandarin and Punjabi will appear in videos, radio and social media content.

Thousands of residents in the Hawkesbury-Nepean region were ordered to evacuate earlier this year after parts of the state were smashed by record-breaking rain.

The SES came under some criticism in the state's north and parts of Sydney over problems with communication.

Commissioner Carlene York said the campaign was a significant step.

She said the campaign is important to focus on locals in the Hawkesbury-Nepean community who speak languages other than English, and some of whom have had multiple floods in the past 18 months.

We have tailored content in multiple languages so that it is as accessible and relevant as possible.

This is just one of the steps we have taken to communicate how to prepare for a flood. Minister for Emergency Services Steph Cooke said the campaign would assist with the community's ability to respond in a crisis.

Three people from culturally and linguistically diverse communities lost their lives during the February-March flood event, and we must continue to make sure that flood warnings and safety messages reach everyone living in this part of Greater Sydney, she said.

Terence Siriwardena, a team leader at the NSW SES Blacktown unit in Sydney's west, was called to help with flood evacuations in the region.

Even if someone spoke English, communication can be difficult in high-stress situations, according to Siriwardena, who has been a volunteer for over five years.

When they are in a crisis themselves, they have a lot of thoughts running through their mind, so we always encourage them to have a plan and to prepare early. Sirwardena, who was born in Australia from a Sri Lankan background, understands what it is like to have someone speak your language.

He said I've come across a number of instances where I have spoken with people who speak the same language as me.

It has proved very important that they can understand and understand what I say because I can speak that language. He said it was great to have information to hand out in other languages.

He said that there are a lot of other languages out there that need interpreting, but having them prepared in statements or videos so that we can pass them out so that we can capture a larger audience would be beneficial.

The Federation of Indian Associations of NSW spokeswoman Dr Yadu Singh said any messages became more prominent if they are in someone's own language.

Even if people speak English, this will lead to more attention to those messages, he said.

Dr Singh said it had been a long time coming.

He said that it is not enough to have these videos in different languages.

More communication channels are needed with community groups to reinforce safety messages, to work hand-in-hand with emergency services such as the SES.