WRPA 2019 Annual Conference and Tradeshow

Crisis Communications: Best Practices in an Emergency

Wednesday, April 10 | 2:45pm - 4:00pm

Session Description:

Floods, storms, police incidents, public health emergencies, and tragic accidents. Do participants’ organizations have a communication plan for when these emergencies strike or do their plans need a little freshening up? Drawing from more than 25 years of journalism experience and from recent incident responses, Hunter will share with participants some communications best practices that they can take back to their agencies along with a customizable checklist for communicating about those emergencies.

Participants will be able to create a customized checklist or template for communicating about emergencies.
Participants will be able to prepare for emergencies by compiling a list of the possible ones facing their agencies.
Participants will be able to share crisis communications best practices with their agency peers before an emergency, which will improve the response.

Speakers:

Hunter George, Communications Officer, Metro Parks Tacoma

About the Speakers:

Hunter has more than two decades of experience in communicating about emergencies, first as a journalist who covered them, and now as a park district communications leader who responds to them. Hunter has covered natural disasters and other emergencies during a 19-year career with The Associated Press and The Tacoma News Tribune. For the past eight years, he has helped manage communications for numerous emergencies during stints with Pierce County and now Metro Parks Tacoma. Those include natural disasters as well as major police incidents, public health crises, and accidents.