The National Emergency Medal is an award of the Australian honours system given for sustained service during a nationally significant emergency; or to other persons who rendered significant service in response to such emergencies. The medal was established by Queen Elizabeth II in October 2011. The medal is awarded for events specifically set out by regulation or may be awarded upon the recommendation of the National Emergency Medal Committee for significant service.
Description
The National Emergency Medal is a circular medal, ensigned with the Australian Coat of Arms. The obverse depicts a central image of a Golden Wattle branch. Surrounding the image at the edge is a further depiction of the flowering wattle. The centre of the reverse has the same border as the obverse, but in the centre it details by inscription the award and the recipient. The National Emergency Medal ribbon colours match the colours of the Humanitarian Overseas Service Medal ribbon. The colours of the ribbon are gold and eucalyptus green. Gold symbolises the Australian sun, optimism and hope. Eucalyptus green complements the symbolism of the medal design. The seven gold coloured bands represent Australia’s six states, with the seventh representing the territories.
Clasps
VIC FIRES 09
Those who performed service during the Black Saturday bushfires and meet certain criteria are recognised with the "VIC FIRES 09" clasp. Requirements include:
Service must be in the protection of lives and property, or in the service of interests, that are not their own, in direct response to the emergency, including support that enables or facilitates the emergency response;
The minimum duration of service that a person is required to have completed to qualify is fourteen days in paid service, including at least two days in the period beginning on 7 February and ending on 14 February 2009. For unpaid service the required length is seven days, including at least one day in the period beginning on 7 February and ending on 14 February 2009.
QLD 2010–11
Those who performed service during the Queensland Floods and Cyclone Yasi and met certain criteria are recognised by the "QLD 2010–11" clasp. Requirements include:
Service must be in the protection of lives and property, or in the service of interests, that are not their own, in direct response to the emergency, including support that enables or facilitates the emergency response;
The qualifying period begins on 21 December 2010 and ends on 14 February 2011;
The minimum duration of service that a person is required to have completed to qualify is twenty eight days of paid service or fourteen days of unpaid service.
TC DEBBIE 2017
Those who performed service during the Cyclone Debbie and met certain criteria are recognised by the "TC DEBBIE 2017" clasp. Requirements include:
Service in the protection of lives and property; in the service of interests, the recipients own; in direct response to the emergency which includes support enabling or facilitating the emergency response;
The qualifying period of service is from 25 March 2017 to 10 April 2017;
Persons must have served 5 days during the qualifying period of service to qualify for award of the medal.
NTH QLD 2019
Those who performed service during the 2019 Townsville flood and met certain criteria are recognised by the "NTH QLD 2019" clasp. Requirements include:
Service in the protection of lives and property; in the service of interests, the recipients own; in direct response to the emergency which includes support enabling or facilitating the emergency response;
Qualifying service must be in the geographical areas of Australia consisting of the following local government areas, as of 25 March 2017:
Persons must have served 5 days during the qualifying period of service to qualify for award of the medal.
2019–2020 bushfire season
On Australia Day 2020, Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced that the National Emergency Medal would be awarded to recognise emergency responders for service during the 2019–20 Australian bushfire season. The nomination criteria, which will be finalised when the fire season ends, will include emergency service volunteers, as well as fire, police, ambulance workers and Defence Force personnel. The criteria for award will also include international troops who deployed to Australia for the express purpose of fighting the fires.
Recipients
As of May 2014 the number of recipients listed in the Australian Honours database has increased. It is well known that this medal has been awarded in far greater numbers than this, however the roll has not been updated for reasons unknown. Some recipients do choose, for privacy reasons, not to have their details added to the roll. As of June 30, 2013, 6,186 National Emergency Medals have been awarded, including 84 for Significant Service. Five people have been recognised for service in both the Queensland and Victorian emergencies.
Criticism
The criteria for award of the National Emergency Medal has been criticised as not honouring the efforts of many volunteers. Due to safety issues many volunteers were rotated out of disaster areas after a few days and unable to spend the required amount of time on the ground in the disaster area to qualify for the medal. Lucy Kippist, writer at The Punch stated the Prime Minister after announcing the creation of the new medal "neglected to mention that most of the volunteers who served in those regions were completely ineligible for the award", with one reader described the award as "confusing, disorganised and grossly unfair way the National Emergency Medal was put together in the first place. Thousands of volunteers across the country also expected to be on that list".
