Frequently Asked Questions
Who is the system for?
The SMS alerts are primarily for Ferny Creek residents who already benefit from the existing community sirens.
Which areas are covered?
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How does it work?
The CFA uses pagers to call its members to fire stations to attend fires and other incidents. Our alert system listens for relevant pager messages and sends them to subscribers via SMS. The messages are not altered in any way but a timestamp is added.
Is this authorised by the CFA?
Yes. The Ferny Creek Bushfire Alert Committee has a well established, good working relationship with the CFA and Sassafras-Ferny Creek Fire Brigade and we are grateful for their ongoing support.
Will I receive all pager messages sent to firefighters?
No. You will only receive pager messages that activate the Ferny Creek community sirens. These are determined by where the incident occurs and the brigades that are called to attend.
What information will the SMS contain?
The SMS will begin with a timestamp, followed by the pager message.
We will also send announcements of Total Fire Ban days and planned downtime for system maintenance.
Once I’ve been alerted to an incident will I receive further SMS updates?
Probably not. This is an alert system only. Only pager messages that the CFA sends to their members calling them to an incident are transmitted. You may receive further SMS messages if more brigades are called to the same incident.
How quickly will I receive an SMS?
Most SMS messages should be received within two minutes of the CFA pager message but there are no guarantees. Mobile reception, network congestion and many other factors can affect the speed of delivery. In any case, if you are going to receive an SMS, the Ferny Creek community sirens should already be sounding. The SMS explains why the sirens are sounding. You should already have a plan in place to seek further information when you hear the sirens.
How many SMS messages will I receive?
We don’t know. It depends on the number of incidents, Total Fire Ban days and exceptional circumstances we need to announce during the fire danger period.
I don’t want to receive messages in the middle of the night - can I have them delayed until morning or not sent at all?
No. The alert system relies on prompt information and the SMS are sent as quickly as possible. We won’t send any announcements (such as Total Fire Ban days) after 8:30PM but you could receive an incident alert at any time of day or night.
Can you expand your coverage to include my location?
No. The SMS alerts are an enhancement to the existing Ferny Creek community sirens which have been developed for the residents of Ferny Creek.
How much does it cost?
For the 2009/10 fire season we are providing the service for $15.00 inc GST per mobile number. We expect this will cover our SMS costs for the duration of the official bushfire season. We are a not-for-profit organisation and any left over funds will be put towards maintenance and upgrading the sirens and SMS systems ahead of the next fire season.
How do I pay?
We use PayPal. If you don’t already have a PayPal account you can either register one or you can use your credit card directly. Visit our subscription page now.
Several members of my family want to subscribe - can you provide a group discount?
No. We’ve set the individual price as low as reasonably possible. We don’t get a further discounted rate from our SMS provider unless we send thousands of SMS messages so we can’t provide group discounts.
I want to unsubscribe - can I do this?
Yes. Send an e-mail to mike@fernycreekalert.org.au with the subject ‘Unsubscribe’.
Can I get a refund?
No. We are a volunteer group and we can’t afford administrative overheads such as this. We’ve kept the subscription price sufficiently low that you should consider it a donation if you opt out before the fire season ends.