Port Arthur Massacre: Emergency Management Approach

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THE INTRODUCTION On the 28th of April 1996, Martin Bryant, armed himself with a high powered rifle and drove to the small tourist village of Port Arthur in Tasmania. For the next 19 hours Bryant indiscriminately shot dead 35 people and injured numerous others before eventually being arrested by Police. This essay will examine the now well known ‘Port Arthur Massacre’ from an emergency management perspective. The essay will identify why this event is considered a disaster, explain the circumstances and effects of the disaster and identify strategies implemented since this disaster that has resulted in improved preparedness for similar situations. THE TOPOGRAPHY OF THE LOCATION Port Arthur is a small tourist village situated on the Tasman…show more content…
In response to this, the local council established a community recovery centre at the Nubeena State Emergency Service Headquarters about 15km from Port Arthur. In the following days recovery centres were established at the historic site, Taranna and Eagle-hawke Neck. The task force and centres were staffed by a range of professionals from eighty different organisations throughout the local, state and federal government levels (Fielding 1997). This was established in the immediate aftermath of the incident and Fielding (1997) explains that this centre played a major part in the recovery process for much of the…show more content…
This scheme cost Australian Tax Payers $500 Million and collected more than 600,000 guns. When reflecting on these figures, an emergency manager can see the positive steps to preventing an incident similar to this from occurring again. Furthermore, reducing the number of automatic and semi-automatic firearms reduces the risks of an incident similar to the Port Arthur Incident claiming so many lives. This is referred to as hazard mitigation. In addition to widespread gun law reform, the Port Arthur incident generated lessons in the management of support services after an emergency. The essay has highlighted from a number of authors, the need for the recovery to be managed or at least implemented by those affected. The desire for the community to own and take hold of the recovery process is believed to be a milestone in Port Arthur’s recovery

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