Phone Trees



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Community members sometimes ask the Rural Fire Service about using phone trees as a way to spread warnings about bush fires.

Phone trees usually work best when the community has full ownership and takes responsibility for the set up and ongoing management of the phone tree. Phone trees can be a good way to increase community connectivity and resilience but should never be relied on as the only source of information.

A phone tree is a communication technique used to spread information quickly. Usually set up in a pyramid form, an initial person calls two people to share important news. Those two people call two people each, who then call two people each and so on until the involved group (or community) have received the message. The cost and time involved in informing a large group of people is shared equally across the group.

 

Phone trees are typically used to share urgent messages, such as the last minute cancellation or change of location of an event, or disaster warnings. Phone trees are useful in rural communities that may not have reliable internet services or mobile phone networks. Email can be ineffective for urgent messages, as many people do not check their email regularly.

People joining the phone tree should understand that they should not rely only on the phone tree to receive a information about a bush fire. It is always better that they are prepared and have a Bush Fire Survival Plan which includes several triggers for activating their plan .

Tips for operating a phone tree



1. Have clear guidelines about how the phone tree will operate and when it will be activated.

2. Make sure your message gets through

Select people for the top of the tree that will get the message right and are more likely to be home and able to carry out the role. A missing connection in the early stages will reduce the number of people receiving the message.

You might consider having a backup plan for when Person A is unable to reach Person B, who was supposed to contact Persons C and D. In this case, Person A should call Persons Persons C and D, thus ensuring that the communication is passed on.



Photo: http://statestreetnetworks.com/



3. Have a backup number for participants. Be careful of using work numbers, particularly for areas where people commute out of the area to work. People should be discouraged from trying to get home to or through a fire-affected area.


4. Participants should let the people above them in the phone tree know if they’re going to be away during the fire season or on a Total Fire Ban day.

5. Consider having a set script for specific emergency situations to prevent the message changing after a number of calls.

6. Decide how many people each person has to call based on the size of the group.

Larger groups may benefit from the first 10 people each calling 3-4 people each, to spread the message faster. The South Australian Country Fire Authority suggests that the message should be distributed within 10 minutes.

Brigade members should avoid getting involved in phone trees directly, as this may interfere with fire fighting duties. The person that heads the phone tree may be someone that has a good view over the area and will be able to see smoke early on, or they may have close contact with a brigade member and can receive information early.



FireWise group in the Northern Rivers (Bronywn Waters)

Phone trees are a simple way to empower a community or FireWise group, as they will be taking action to protect their community. People participating in a phone tree are likely to be better prepared as they are better connected and generally better informed. Use these connections to increase preparedness in your area.

If you love your smartphone applications, and have some money for expenses, it might be worth looking at this blog about an app called ‘Mr. Phone Tree’, which can streamline the process for you. http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-19512_7-20075173-233/phone-tree-app-makes-calls-so-you-dont-have-to/

References:

CFS (SA). Accessed 28 November 2012. Community telephone trees. Country Fire Authority South Australia. http://www.cfs.sa.gov.au/site/education/strategies_for_community_groups/community_telephone_trees.jsp

SE Smith. 24 August 2012. What is a phone tree? on the wiseGEEK blog at http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-phone-tree.htm

State of Victoria Department of Sustainability and Environment. 2005. Effective Engagement: building relationships with community and other stakeholders - Book 3: The engagement toolkit. DSE, Melbourne.