Incident Controller Survey

Incident Controllers (ICs) play a critical role in community evacuation. As part of the comprehensive review of the Western Australian Community Evacuation in Emergencies arrangements, feedback is being sought from Incident Controllers.

The survey will take approximately 15 minutes to complete and remain open until 3pm Friday 10 July 2026. All feedback received via this survey will assist in the development of the draft State EM Policy, Plan and Guideline that will then be provided for broad consultation to the wider emergency management sector.

Please click on the link below to complete the survey.

Complete Incident Controller Survey open in new window

Initial Consultation

Background

A comprehensive review of the Western Australian Community Evacuation in Emergencies Guideline (Guideline) is undertaken every five years to ensure its relevance and continuous improvement. The upcoming review will begin with targeted feedback from key stakeholders on the current Guideline. This input will inform the development of a consultation draft, which will then undergo broad consultation across the emergency management sector.

State EM Policy 5.7 and State EM Plan section 5.3.2 on Community Evacuation will also be reviewed to ensure alignment.

The initial consultation period was open from Tuesday 25 November 2025 to Friday 20 February 2026. During this period, key stakeholders had the opportunity to provide comment on the current evacuation arrangements.

To guide the review process, the State Emergency Management (EM) Policy Branch has developed the following objective and principles:

Objective

To develop fit-for-purpose and contemporary State EM arrangements for community evacuation that assist Emergency Management Agencies (EMAs) in planning for and conducting community evacuation for all hazards that may impact Western Australia.

Review Principles

  • Provides best practice guidance to assist EMAs in planning and conducting community evacuation activities
  • Clarifies roles and responsibilities for community evacuation in Western Australia.
  • Ensures alignment with nationally agreed principles for evacuation planning and the recognised five-stage evacuation process
  • Updates for currency, including consequential and factual amendments
  • Improves readability, accessibility and useability

Review Timeline

Comprehensive Review Timeline

This timeline sets out the anticipated dates for a submission to the State Emergency Management Committee (SEMC) for approval.

  • Timeline item 1 - active

    Initial review and consultation

    November 2025 - June 2026

    As part of initial review phase, State EM Policy Branch will consult with and incorporate feedback from key stakeholders with roles and responsibilities for community evacuation during emergencies.

    Conduct survey with Incident Controllers from a range of emergency management agencies. Feedback provided will assist in the development of draft arrangements that will then be provided for broad consultation with the wider emergency management sector.

  • Timeline item 2 - active

    Development of consultation draft

    July - August 2026

    Informed by feedback from the initial consultation and IC survey, development of draft:

    • State EM Policy
    • State EM Plan; and
    • WA Community Evacuation in Emergencies Guideline

  • Timeline item 3 - active

    Broad consultation

    September - November 2026

    Twelve-week broad consultation period.

    Publication of draft arrangements for emergency management sector feedback.

  • Timeline item 4 - active

    Consolidation and integration of feedback

    TBC

    All feedback provided during the broad consultation period will be considered.

    Consideration of feedback may lead to further stakeholder consultation and amendments.

  • Timeline item 5 - active

    Endorsement

    TBC

    Anticipated submission to SEMC Subcommittees for endorsement.

  • Timeline item 6 - active

    Approval and publication

    TBC

    Anticipated submission to SEMC for approval and publication on the SEMC website.

Initial Feedback Survey

Drop a quick comment

Does State EM Policy section 5.7 need to be amended?

This poll has concluded.

Total Votes: 1

Does State EM Plan section 5.3.2 need to be amended?

This poll has concluded.

Total Votes: 1

Does the WA Community Evacuation in Emergencies Guideline need to be amended?

This poll has concluded.

Total Votes: 2

How could the State EM Policy, Plan or Guidelines be improved?

Provide your feedback on how the State EM Policy, Plan or WA Community Evacuation in Emergencies Guideline could be improved. Feedback provided will be displayed below.
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