In the context of recent bushfires, floods, and heatwaves in Australia, the critical importance of effective risk communication has been underscored. The publics’ willingness to cooperate with emergency services mandates and take informed self-protective action hinges on the dissemination of culturally appropriate, trustworthy, and coherent messaging. Australian and overseas evidence indicates that new and emerging communities (NEC), such as those with a refugee background, can be differentially affected by climate change risks and require discrete messaging. Employing a qualitative focus group methodology, this study examined how participants with a refugee background access and make sense of emergency and risk information. Ten semi-structured focus groups were conducted in four metropolitan and three rural communities in South Australia with 112 community and stakeholder participants from diverse demographic, sociocultural and ethnic backgrounds.  Analysis elaborates various ways in which social networks (social capital) mediate the diffusion of risk information. In particular, I show how the size and cohesion of newly arrived refugee cohorts impacts the dissemination and reception of information. Further, resettlement support agencies fulfilled an important networking role, linking new arrivals to critical risk and adaptation information and associated behavioural norms.  Emergent or underdeveloped social capital is argued to constitute a serious risk factor for NEC, limiting access to fundamental information about risks and adaptations associated with climate change. Remedial policy recommendations are discussed.