Emergency markers
The City of Melbourne has installed emergency markers to enable emergency services to pinpoint the location of the emergency and the quickest route to get there. There are emergency markers around:
- the Tan track
- Birrarung Marr
- Alexandra Gardens
- Victoria Harbour
- Waterfront City
- Yarra’s Edge.
What are emergency markers?
Emergency markers look like street signs and help the Emergency Services Telecommunications Authority (ESTA) clearly identify the location of emergency callers.
The markers have a six figure alphanumeric reference (three letters and three numbers) that triple zero (000) callers can quote when stating their location.
How do emergency markers work?
The two most important pieces of information required when calling 000 are the location of the emergency (where is it?) and the nature of the emergency (what is it?).
When an emergency marker is quoted, an ESTA dispatcher can provide specific directional information to the responding emergency services.
Emergency markers are more than just signs. They are supported by GPS co-ordinates and directional instructions that ESTA operators can provide to police, fire, ambulance and the State Emergency Service. This includes advising them of obstructions such as locked gates, road closures and quickest access points.
The
Emergency Services Telecommunications Authority manages 000 calls throughout Victoria for Victoria Police, CFA, MFB and the Metropolitan Ambulance Service.