1. Are You Ready for the Next One?

4. Preparing Your Water System for the Next Emergency
Do you know all of your system’s assets?
Do you know their condition?
Do you know the areas of greatest risk to your system?
Do you or your staff know who to call?

5. Preparing Your Water System for the Next Emergency
Complete and/or Update Risk (Vulnerability) Assessments
Complete and/or Update Emergency Response Plans

6. Preparing Your Water System for the Next Emergency
Communicate and Train your staff on implementation
Establish relationships with your emergency response partners

8. Risk Communications Risk = Hazard + Outrage Mental Noise
High anxiety/outrage limits understanding
Preparation is key to trust and reducing outrage
Message Mapping
Identify stakeholders & questions
Analyze questions for underlying concerns
Develop Key Messages and support for messages
Test & practice Messages
Determine how to deliver message through correct channels
Press
Social Media
Face to Face

9. Risk Communications Risk = Hazard + Outrage Message Mapping
Identify stakeholders & questions
Residents, emergency officials, TCEQ, Media, ?
Analyze questions for underlying concerns
What do they need to know?
Is the water safe? When?
Why should we trust you?
What is your history of routine communications trustworthiness and transparency?

10. Risk Communications Risk = Hazard + Outrage
Develop Key Messages and support for messages
Short, concise
27 words in print
9 seconds on TV
Show Compassion, Conviction and Optimism
Message should be to 6th to 8th grade level
Stress reduces comprehension
Repeat information
Summarize what you are going to say
Tell more with supporting information
Summarize what you told them
Avoid absolutes

11. Risk Communications Risk = Hazard + Outrage Test & practice Messages
Select spokespersons
Anticipate questions
Prepare answers
Practice, Practice, Practice!
Perception is Reality
Cite credible third parties
Build trust in advance of crisis
People judge the messenger before the message
Trust based on past actions, communications, transparency
Empathy, sincerity and
LISTENING!

12. Risk Communications
Risk = Hazard + Outrage
“When people are stressed and upset, they want to know that you care before they care about what you know.”

13. Determine how to deliver message through correct channels Press
Risk Communications
Risk = Hazard + Outrage
Determine how to deliver message through correct channels
Press
Face to Face
Social Media

14. Risk Communications Risk = Hazard + Outrage Stick to core messages
Prepare rigorously for highest priority risks
Systematically review/analyze stakeholder perceptions
Deliver consistent messaging
Words fully aligned with actions, matching human empathy with decisive action
Factor in the importance of culture and language
Act with honesty and integrity, and speak with one voice – based on facts not speculation