This volume of The Official History of Australian Peacekeeping, Humanitarian and Post-Cold War Operations recounts the activities of Australia's military forces in response to overseas natural disasters. The military's involvement in overseas emergency management is focused primarily on the period immediately after disaster strikes: transporting relief supplies, providing medical assistance, restoring basic services and communications and other logistical support. Beginning with the 1917–18 influenza epidemic that ravaged the Pacific and culminating with the 2005 Pakistan earthquake, this book covers Australia's response to some of the most catastrophic natural events of the twentieth century. In their Time of Need is richly detailed, as Steven Bullard weaves together official government records and archival images with the personal narratives and photographs of those who served. This volume is an authoritative and compelling history of Australia's efforts to help their neighbours.
Part I. Australia's Disaster Policies: 1. From arbitrary assistance to organised chaos: the history of international disaster relief; 2. Capable, available and willing to respond: Australia's overseas disaster policies; 3. 'A plurality of mandates': the context of overseas disaster policy; Part II. Australia's Disaster Relief Operations: 4. Combatting the Spanish lady: Samoa, Tonga, and Fiji influenza pandemic, 1918–19; 5. A tale of two mountains: volcanoes at Rabaul in 1937 and Mount Lamington in 1951; 6. A sustained relief effort: new Hebrides cyclone, 1959–60; 7. Goodwill in a time of tension: Indonesia, 1960–63; 8. Help for the highlands: influenza and famine relief, 1969–72; 9. Back to Bali: earthquakes in Irian Jaya and Bali, 1976; 10. Regional assistance: disasters in the Solomon Islands and Tonga, 1977–82; 11. Disaster relief in post-independence PNG, 1975–94: earthquakes, famine, floods, cyclones and volcanoes; 12. 'The unleashed fury of Mother Nature': cyclones in Fiji and Vanuatu, 1979–88; 13. 'An outstanding overall effort': Cyclone Namu in the Solomon Islands, 1986; 14. Cyclone relief in the Pacific, 1990–93: Cyclones Ofa, Betsy and Kina; 15. El Niño drought relief: Operation Sierra/Ples Drai, Papua New Guinea, 1997-98; 16. Famine relief in the midst of chaos: Operation AusIndo Jaya, Indonesia, 1998; 17. Ples bagarap: Operation Shaddock, Papua New Guinea, 1998; 18. 'The worst in living memory': Operation Niue Assist and disasters in the Pacific, 1998–2004; 19. Waves of destruction: Indian Ocean tsunami and the international response, 2004-05; 20. The road to Banda Aceh: ADF planning, deployment and airlift mission; 21. 'We saw the worst of it': medical and engineering support in Operation Sumatra Assist; 22. Getting the job done: enabling Operation Sumatra Assist, threats and withdrawal; 23. 'Here is your loved one back and this is their name': Operation Cawdor and Operation Thai Assist, Thailand, 2004–06; 24. 'In their time of need': Operation Sumatra Assist II, 2005; 25. The 'Day of Judgement': deploying on Operation Pakistan Assist, 2005–06; 26. 'They have won our hearts forever': operation Pakistan Assist, 2005–06; 27. Conclusion: Australia's overseas emergency relief operations, 1918–2006.
Steven Bullard is a senior historian in the Military History Section of the Australian War Memorial.
