Cyclones, Clicks and Consequences: How Social Media Can Save Lives or Put Queenslanders at Risk
Social media is now one of Queenslanders’ first ports of call when a cyclone threatens, carrying both life‑saving alerts and dangerously misleading rumours. Around the world, emergency experts warn that this double‑edged digital ecosystem is reshaping how communities prepare, panic and respond when extreme weather hits.
Queensland’s cyclone lesson
When Tropical Cyclone Jasper dumped record rainfall on Far North Queensland in 2023, locals stranded on the roof of the Lion’s Den Hotel used posts and satellite calls relayed via social media to alert family and authorities, a chain of communication residents believe helped save 18 lives. The Inspector‑General of Emergency Management (IGEM) later concluded that social media played a vital role in warning communities during Jasper’s floods and landslides.
Yet IGEM’s review of this past season found the same platforms fuelled complacency as Tropical Cyclone Alfred hovered off the south‑east Queensland coast in early 2025. Some users dismissed Alfred as “media hype” or assumed the threat had passed when the system stalled offshore, forcing disaster managers to fight not just the weather but a wave of misplaced confidence online.
TikTok, influencers and official warnings
Griffith University communication lecturer Dr Susan Grantham’s study of TikTok videos during cyclones Jasper, Kirrily and Alfred shows how hard it is for official accounts to cut through algorithm‑driven feeds. During Jasper, not a single government account appeared among the 50 most prominent TikTok videos, which were dominated by humour and spectacle rather than practical guidance.
By Kirrily in 2024, Queensland government accounts began returning to TikTok after a pause over data‑security concerns, and then‑premier Steven Miles’ posts started appearing in trending content. Under the new LNP government, Premier David Crisafulli went further during Cyclone Alfred, live‑streaming briefings on TikTok to audiences of around 35,000 people per session, an approach Grantham sees as a “fantastic opportunity” to partner with ethical content creators who already command trusted followings.
Global examples: when rumours outrun the storm
The problem Queensland faces is mirrored globally, from the Atlantic hurricane belt to Asian typhoon zones. During the deadly 2024 US hurricane season, online conspiracy theories claimed Hurricanes Helene and Milton were “engineered” and that recovery funds were being secretly diverted, narratives amplified by high‑follower verified accounts and recycled across platforms.
Researchers tracking Helene found that false claims spread fast enough to undermine trust in official forecasts and fuel hostility towards emergency agencies and meteorologists. In response, the US Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) launched a dedicated online “Rumour Response” page to debunk misleading posts in near real time, illustrating how emergency agencies are now forced to run parallel information operations alongside their on‑the‑ground response.
What academic leaders say
A growing body of disaster‑communication research warns that misinformation during natural hazards is not a side issue but a core risk multiplier. A 2024–25 narrative review of social media and disasters found that misleading posts and rumours typically travel faster than official updates, eroding trust, driving anxiety and complicating evacuation and rescue efforts.
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