Australian Warning System explained
Updated 6 October 2026
Australia uses one set of warning levels for bushfire, flood, storm, cyclone, extreme heat and other hazards. Learn the three levels now so you know what to do when one appears on your phone or on the radio.
In an emergency, call 000. HazAlerts is an information page, not an emergency service. Follow the instructions of your state or territory emergency services and the Bureau of Meteorology.
The three levels
| Level | What it means | What to do |
|---|---|---|
| Advice (yellow) | An incident has started. There is no immediate danger. | Stay informed. Check your plan. Keep watching for updates in case things change. |
| Watch and Act (orange) | The threat is higher. Conditions are changing. | Start acting now. Put your plan into action, and think about leaving early if that is part of your plan. |
| Emergency Warning (red) | The highest level. You may be in danger. | Act immediately. Follow the instructions in the warning. Delay can put your life at risk. |
The levels describe the threat, not the size of the event. A small fire near homes can be at Emergency Warning, while a large fire in remote country can sit at Advice.
Fire danger ratings
Fire danger ratings are a separate scale. They tell you how dangerous a fire would be if one started today, not whether a fire is burning. The ratings run from Moderate through High and Extreme to Catastrophic. On a Catastrophic day, the advice is to leave high-risk areas the night before or early in the morning. Do not wait for a warning.
Where to find warnings
- Bureau of Meteorology: weather, flood, cyclone and tsunami warnings at bom.gov.au. Our home page also lists the live BOM warnings by state.
- Your state or territory emergency services: the fire service and the SES each publish warnings and incident maps for their own state. Bookmark the one for where you live and where you travel.
- Your council: local flood maps, evacuation centres and road closures. Use our council directory links to find yours.
- ABC Local Radio: the official emergency broadcaster in most regions. A battery or wind-up radio still works when the internet and mobile network do not.
- Emergency+ app: shows your location so you can read it out to a 000 operator.
Phone alerts
Some warnings reach your phone as a text message or a loud alert, sent according to where your phone is, not where you live. Do not rely on them alone. Coverage can fail, and some warnings are never sent by text. Check at least one other source.
Make a habit of three checks
- Know the level and read the whole warning, not just the headline.
- Check which area the warning covers, using suburb or town names and the map.
- Decide what you will do and when, and tell the people who depend on you.
Build the decisions in advance with our household emergency plan.