The second phase of the “Floods. The Risk is Real” public safety campaign has been launched by the NSW State Emergency Service (NSW SES). This campaign is an initiative of the NSW Government’s Hawkesbury-Nepean Valley Flood Risk Management Strategy and is designed by Infrastructure NSW and NSW SES to increase awareness of flood risk and encourage preparedness amongst people who live in the valley. From social research undertaken in 2018, only 18% of surveyed residents were aware of the high flood risk and 80% had done nothing to prepare for floods.
Phase one of the campaign was delivered in 2019 and resulted in more than 52,000 unique visits to the NSW SES website to access flood information. A post-campaign survey found more than 70% of people who saw the campaign took at least one action to prepare for flooding.
This phase includes a direct mail out to suburbs impacted by a 1 in 500 chance per year flood (similar to the 1867 record flood), as well as local print and digital advertising. The campaign is supported by an interactive flood mapping tool and other resources about local flooding risks across the floodplain. The campaign video which features local NSW SES volunteers can be viewed here.
Residents and workers in the Hawkesbury-Nepean Valley are encouraged to check their flood risk at myfloodrisk.nsw.gov.au.
