Protecting our people
The combined size and intensity of Cyclone Yasi was unlike anything we had experienced before. While bracing for destructive winds, storm surges and significant rain, more than 140 employees from both our Cairns and Townsville bases needed to be at home with their families and preparing their properties. We closed the bases for non-essential employees and focused on solutions to move aircraft to safe locations using staff not residing in the Cairns and Townville areas.
Employee communication was a significant focus of crisis management activities. Simultaneously, employees needed to know what the organisation was doing in response to the cyclone, and the organisation needed up-to-date information on employees’ wellbeing. Power outages and limited telecommunications systems post-cyclone needed to be factored in. Communication mediums included:
- intranet,
- email,
- internet,
- text messages,
- recorded information hotline, and
- employee contact phone line.
A muster point was also arranged so information could be relayed through a satellite phone if required. Fortunately, some of the ‘worst-case-scenario’ mediums were not required, but employees were extremely grateful that those systems were in place.
RFDS mental health professional, Helma Quinn-Leeman, on her way to Cardwell where the team provided mental health services to victims of Cyclone Yasi.