Dialing 000

In Australia, we have a centralised emergency system. You dial '000' from any phone in Australia and an operator will answer with 'Police, Fire, or Ambulance?'. You need to tell them which option and they will connect you through to that service. But what service takes care of what type of emergency? Check out the triplezero website.

Instructions: Select each tab for more information.

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Police

First up...follow this link to the Victoria Police Homepage.

Police stations closest to our campuses are listed below in case you want to contact them, or drop in sometime.

  • Box Hill Police Station
  • Melbourne East Precinct, Melbourne City
  • Lilydale Police Station 

Or, use Find my local police station.

Some examples of when to ask for Police are:

  • any suspected offence in progress, being witnessed or just committed
  • any situation where life or injury is threatened
  • motor vehicle accident where persons are injured
  • air, rail or water accident
  • any event which might cause danger to persons or property
  • explosion or bomb incident/threat
  • a disturbance or breach of the peace, for example domestic violence incident or anti-social behaviour.

    Talking to the Police when they're in public is okay too in Australia. They serve their communities, so if you pass them in the street and need help, don't be afraid to ask a question. They serve a whole bunch of other non-emergency purposes as well:

    • Site documents and sign off on statutory declarations (Get a photocopy of your passport or other documents signed in case you lose them!)
    • Protective Service Officers (PSO's) are present on all major train stations, can help you with directions or if you're feeling unsafe, they're there to serve you!
    • Extra security at major public events such as the AFL Grand Final and Melbourne Food & Wine Festival.
    • Take statements and interview people about crimes that have been committed as well as refer victims of crime onto further services for support and assistance.

    Fire 

    We call them 'Firies' here in Australia. And they do much more than just fight fires. They deal with:

    • Fires
    • Hazardous incidents
    • Automatic alarm responses
    • Road accident rescues
    • Emergency medical response
    • Urban search and rescue
    • Marine response

    There's 2 branches of Firies in Victoria - MFB - Metropolitan Fire Brigade and CFA - Country Fire Authority and they play similar roles in different areas of Victoria. Most of you will be under the jurisdiction of the MFB, but you should check the website if you're living further than 60 minutes out of the city as to which of these departments services your area, the triple zero operator can work this out if you give your address quickly, they usually have the areas memorised or can search their directories much quicker than you can!

    More Information

    Watch this video.

    Ambulance

    If you're thinking of calling an ambulance, the only question you should ask yourself is 'is this a medical emergency that I can't solve by going to the doctor, a relative or using the Call a Nurse helpline - 1300 60 60 24?' If it is a genuine emergency, don't hesitate to call. The operator will ask a series of questions to determine the nature of the emergency and whether an ambulance is required. The best advice we can give is to TRY to stay calm and give the operator as MUCH DETAIL as you can - This is where the Emergency Plus Application is really handy for you and the operator on the other end! Check out Victoria Ambulance Website to learn more about how the service works in Victoria.

    More Information

    Watch this video.

    Emergency + Phone Application

    Now here is a one-stop shop for all your emergency needs. Emergency + is a new application from Australia's emergency services providers that gives you everything you need when it comes to reporting an emergency. These are the links to download the applications on iPhone and Android.


    Last modified: Wednesday, 27 July 2022, 2:57 PM