The Power of Tech in Critical Infrastructure: How Cloud Hosting Supported Community Safety During a Cyclone

The operational resilience of critical infrastructure, such as water supply and flood mitigation systems, is non-negotiable, especially during major weather events. When Tropical Cyclone Alfred threatened South East Queensland earlier in 2025, the region’s bulk water supplier, Seqwater, faced a dual challenge: managing the physical water assets and ensuring that vital, life-saving information reached millions of residents without interruption.

This real-world crisis demonstrated the indispensable power of scalable technology, specifically the mission-critical cloud hosting provided by Brisbane-based company ATech, in maintaining essential public services under extreme duress.

The Challenge: Downtime is Not an Option

Seqwater is responsible for managing Queensland's water supply and providing essential water quality and flood mitigation information. Before partnering with ATech, Seqwater's digital platform risked website downtime during peak usage times, a potentially catastrophic outcome during a crisis.

When a tropical cyclone approaches, the public floods online channels seeking urgent updates on dam releases, water safety, and emergency contacts. Seqwater needed a digital platform that was not only secure and responsive but could also scale instantaneously to handle millions of simultaneous requests, allowing staff to focus on critical water management rather than website stability.

The Solution: Mission-Critical Cloud Resilience

Seqwater's transition to ATech's cloud hosting services, utilising their Enterprise Drupal Platform, proved to be a critical strategic move. ATech’s solution provided high availability and real-time scalability as well as enterprise-grade security and compliance.

It wasn't long until their system was put to the test...

_{Managing Director of ATech, Vice Chair of ACS QLD Branch Executive Committee and ACS Member Sarah-Jane Peterschlingmann}

^{NASA Johnson Space Center, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons}

The Cyclone Alfred Test: Undeniable Performance

The resilience of the new platform was immediately put to the test during Tropical Cyclone Alfred. From March 7th to 11th, the surge in public demand for information was immense, yet the system remained seamless.

The ATech platform for Seqwater successfully managed:

Over 1.41 million page views.
9.35 million requests.
A peak load of 9,600 page views (or approximately 67,480 requests) within a single 15-minute timeframe.

This seamless performance ensured that the public retained unbroken access to vital safety data on water networks amidst the crisis.

The success was echoed by Seqwater’s digital team. Joel Knights, Team Leader - Digital and Creative at Seqwater, praised the implementation, stating, "The smooth transition to ATech's hosting was a game-changer for us. The reliability and resilience of the platform have allowed us to focus on delivering critical water updates to our stakeholders without worrying about website outages."

The platform also provided crucial support for a prominent local council, which relied on the robust digital presence to disseminate emergency updates, road closures, and essential community services, handling over 10.1 million page views in the seven days leading up to the cyclone.

The New Standard for Critical Infrastructure

The case of Seqwater and ATech underscores a fundamental truth in modern governance: reliable, resilient technological infrastructure is a core component of disaster management and public safety. By leveraging mission-critical cloud hosting, governmental and utility bodies can ensure that communication remains open, essential services continue to operate, and public safety information is always accessible, even when facing extreme natural events.