Communication is key to emergency management

Planning and communication are the keys to responding to emergency situations, according to crisis-experienced speakers at the March 17 meeting of the Massachusetts Municipal Management Association in Wrentham.

Powerful storms, chemical explosions, city or town hall lockdowns and other emergencies can paralyze municipalities unless they are prepared with a well-tested crisis plan.

When creating a plan, it’s best to get everyone from the custodian to the fire chief involved, according to Christopher Coleman, the assistant town manager/operations director in Needham. Coleman, who helped supervise the development of the town’s safety and emergency quick reference guidebook, emphasized that successfully planning for a crisis is a “team effort.”

Emergency information should reach every employee at every level.

“Communication is key,” he said.

Needham asks employees for feedback regarding the town’s safety guidelines.

“Typically, information coming into the town isn’t handled by managers,” Coleman said. “You have people within your departments who answer the phones; they need to be prepared as much as you.”

Coleman stressed that every employee should be involved in drills and training exercises, preferably at a time that most reflects a normal workday. The goal is not to scare employees, but rather to educate them so they will be able to respond quickly and calmly to any situation that may arise, Coleman said. He also addressed the importance of debriefing after every drill, which will help to reveal any weaknesses or potential problems that could arise.

Knowing who is a part of your team is also important, said Needham Fire Chief Paul Buckley. Needham’s crisis team consists of nine different positions, which vary across departments. Some agencies that are sometimes staffed by volunteers are also a part of the response team, he said.

Buckley suggested meeting the volunteers and employees before an emergency situation, rather than during one. Getting to know the people will help you know how they will react under stressful situations, and you will be able to appoint them appropriately.

The speakers at the meeting stressed communication at all levels during a crisis. Needham uses “floor captains,” whose job it is to make sure everyone on their floor is aware of a situation and ready to help with evacuations and lockdowns. To prevent confusion when cell phones are down, they use two-way radios to communicate.

With the 24-hour news cycle and social networking, information often gets out quickly to the public. Scituate Town Administrator Patricia Vinchesi said it can be time-consuming for managers to reassure and inform their community through the media during a crisis. It can also be problematic if multiple people are sending out different messages.

Vinchesi suggested having an appointed public information officer to handle media inquires. One person should be picked to deal with the media and they should be the one who is the most articulate and reassuring, she said.

Vinchesi, whose community was hit hard by a blizzard late last December, used the town’s website to update citizens about road closures and electricity and gas outages.

Getting residents to leave their homes and go to shelters can sometimes be difficult, especially if it means leaving their pets behind. The town of Scituate provided a separate shelter for animals during the December blizzard, which, Vinchesi said, helped to increase the number of people who left their homes for the shelter.

When a chemical explosion rocked the town of Danvers in November 2006, residents were left homeless for anywhere from two weeks to a year, according to Danvers Town Manager Wayne Marquis. The prolonged crisis challenged the town to find ways to make shelters more accommodating to the residents, he said. The town employed the recreation department to interact with the children at the shelter and held monthly dinners for displaced residents that included counseling and support from professionals.

During any crisis it’s important to acknowledge the “unsung heroes” who went above and beyond the call of duty, according to Vinchesi and Marquis, who both suggested having ceremonies and awarding medals. Doing so, they said, provides an opportunity to thank the community.

MEETING HANDOUTS

• “Weathering the Storm”: Emergency Management and Response (592K PDF)
Presentation by town of Scituate

• Town of Needham Municipal Buildings and Property, Safety & Emergency Guidelines (1M PDF)
Presentation by town of Needham

• Town of Needham Municipal Buildings and Property, Safety & Emergency Guidelines (216K PDF)

• Needham Lockdown Drill, Feb. 25, 2009 (84K PDF)

• Town of Danvers Emergency Response to November 2006 Explosion: Lessons Learned (3.7M PDF)
Presentation by town of Danvers