TOWNSVILLE, Australia — An application designed to help small businesses prepare for and respond to disasters has been launched by Australia’s north-eastern state of Queensland’s government.
The Disaster Hub application will allow businesses to access checklists, financial assistance, and other resources when disasters strike in Queensland.
Businesses will find “prepare, respond and recover” checklists, suggested communication messaging, how-to video animations, small business resilience case studies and links to access information and financial assistance.
It’s hoped the free app will help small businesses get back on their feet sooner after a disaster.
Small Business Minister Di Farmer says the government sought feedback from small businesses, industry, and local councils hit by the 2019 monsoon trough in the north and far north.
“We know that small businesses have done it tough through Covid, and in north Queensland, small businesses have been doing it even tougher,” she said in Townsville on May 18.
“Whether that’s a natural disaster or whether it’s something like a cybersecurity strike, you can immediately go to the app and you can find out what you need to do immediately to keep yourself and your employees safe.”
Thuringowa Member of Parliament Aaron Harper said the app would help small business owners in stressful times.
“Many small businesses often become overwhelmed not knowing how to best prepare their business ahead of a looming disaster or where to go for help afterward,” he said.
The disaster hub app can be opened on the Business Queensland website via the free app on Android and Apple.
The app has downloadable resources that can be accessed during power outages.
The app is designed in such a way that it can provide real-time notifications to recommend small businesses if they are required to prepare, or when financial assistance becomes accessible.
This initiative was developed in partnership with the Small Business Recovery Advisory Council and was mutually funded by the Queensland and Commonwealth Governments under the Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements (DRFA).
Introduced on Nov 1, 2018, The Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements continues combined funding from Commonwealth and State governments, supplying monetary assistance to help communities recover from disasters.
The Australian government’s latest federal budget introduced on May 11 has allocated AU$210 million ($163 million) for a new climate change information service, AU$600 million ($467 million) for a new agency to encourage natural disaster recovery and resilience, and AU$10 ($7.78 billion) for a reinsurance fund to reduce insurance premiums in northern Australia.
(Edited by Vaibhav Vishwanath Pawar and Nikita Nikhil)
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