SOME Cardinia Shire residents may not receive Victoria's new Emergency Alert - a $15 million telephone-based warning system for life-threatening emergencies - due to poor mobile phone coverage.
Under the system, at-risk communities would receive a voice message on a landline telephone or an SMS on a mobile telephone during an emergency.
But several areas across Cardinia Shire, in particular in the hilly suburbs of Cockatoo, Gembrook and Upper Beaconsfield, regularly experience poor mobile coverage.
General manager of CFA's Western Port area Peter Schmidt said residents who lived in areas with poor mobile phone coverage should ensure they have a working landline - and not a cordless one in case of power failure.
"If you live in an area where you believe there is a mobile phone 'black spot', you should seek advice from your telecommunications provider on what options there are to improve your mobile phone coverage.
"Residents need to remain constantly vigilant during the bushfire season, and have their bushfire survival plans ready to activate in case of an emergency."
A spokesman for the Office of Emergency Services Commissioner said the emergency alert system would be based on the subscribers' billing address.
For more information on Emergency Alert, visit www.emergencyalert.gov.au or call the Victorian Bushfire Information Line on 1800 240 667.
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