Keeping Our Mountain Connected, Informed & Safe
How the Service is Managed
This community SMS service is a locally run initiative, created to address the
communication gaps experienced during past storm, flood, and power outage
events on Tamborine Mountain.
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Who’s Behind It: The service is operated by a small, independent
local team — not a government body. It was created by Tamborine
Mountain locals who wanted a simple, fast, and reliable way to share
information when it's needed most.
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How it Works: We use a secure SMS platform to send brief updates
to subscribed residents. These might include storm alerts, power outages, road closures, fire bans,
food and fuel access or other critical information — as well as directions to community centres and
relief services when activated.
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Where the Info Comes From: We monitor updates from multiple
trusted sources — including BOM, Energex, SES, Scenic Rim Regional
Council, and verified local reports. During major weather events,
messages are limited to a single SMS summary per day to reduce
noise and preserve battery life. Messages are written by real people —
all located locally with stable electricity and internet access during
extreme conditions.
Infrastructure & Resources
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Messages are distributed through a secure third-party SMS gateway
hosted in Australia.
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Subscriber information is kept private and never shared.
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The system is designed for reliability — with cloud-based redundancy
and tested fail-safes.
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Currently, the service is operated on a not-for-profit basis, with
minimal overheads and local volunteer input.
Our Goals for the Future
We’re committed to building a resilient and self-reliant community. Planned
improvements include:
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More Local Reporting: We’re building a trusted network of local
observers — including residents, businesses, and community groups
— to relay accurate real-time updates.
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Two-Way SMS Capabilities: Enabling subscribers to reply with info
or
confirm they’re OK during emergencies.
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Multi-Channel Alerts: Extending alerts to email and web
notifications
for redundancy and accessibility.
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Emergency Prep & Event Notices: Adding pre-storm readiness
reminders, roadworks updates, and community event alerts — so we’re
informed even when it’s not a crisis.
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Community Funding Options: Exploring sponsorships or low-cost
voluntary support to keep the service independent and sustainable.
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Backup Radio & AI Tools: We’re exploring FM radio infrastructure
and
AI-supported automation to support community communication if all
telecom services are disrupted.