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Queensland’s residents won’t have trouble communicating with loved ones or asking for assistance from responders during natural disasters. This is thanks to the completed installation of Sky Muster satellite installations at 62 key evacuation centres in Queensland.
The new satellite installations will allow Queensland residents to connect to a Wi-Fi network for free, even if land-based communications networks get damaged or go offline. However, they will need to be within range of the evacuation centres across Queensland in local government areas such as Moreton Bay Regional, Gold Coast City, Scenic Rim Regional, Toowoomba Regional, and Rockhampton Regional.
The satellites are part of the Australian Government’s Strengthening Telecommunications Against Natural Disasters (STAND) program, established in response to the devastating 2019-2020 bushfires and received an initial funding of $37.1 million.
Besides the new satellites, the STAND program has also since aided local communities struck by natural disasters during the succeeding years. This includes the 2022 East Coast Floods, the December 2021 and January 2022 Western Australia bushfires, Cyclone Seroja, the June 2021 Victorian and Ingham, Queensland floods.
In a media release, Minister for Communications Michelle Rowland announced that the Albanese Government, through its Better Connectivity Plan for Regional and Rural Australia, has committed to add another $100 million towards communications resilience. This also includes funding an expanded version of the STAND program.
“The Albanese Government is committed to delivering the investments and infrastructure which local communities need to be better prepared for natural disasters, and while no network can ever be 100 per cent disaster-proof, these investments will go a long way towards ensuring local residents can stay connected in the most difficult times,” said Rowland.
Meanwhile, another $50 million from the Telecommunications Resilience Disaster Innovation Program (TRDI) will help boost the development and deployment of new technological solutions to address communication issues during natural disasters.
Meanwhile, Minister for Community and Housing and Digital Economi Leeanne Enoch said the STAND program is a “game changer” for Queensland residents seeking shelter seeking shelter during a natural disaster.
“Access to satellite-based internet services allowing fast and reliable access to social media to contact friends and family as well as insurance companies and government services is crucial when other telecommunication networks may be affected during a disaster,” Enoch said.
Paulo Rizal is a content producer for Comms Room. He writes content around popular media, journalism, social media, and more.
