Share on Social Media

Wildfires are long, drawn-out events that often require localities to ask for state assistance to get key messages out to the public, manage and monitor social media and keep up with the demands of local media. Use these tips to coordinate communication efforts with localities before a wildfire starts burning.

Focus on messaging before the wildfire season.

• Explore the U.S. Fire Administration’s public outreach materials to develop your own public safety announcements and awareness campaigns.
• Encourage residents to get their homes and property ready, and to take ownership of being prepared and having a plan.

Develop pre-scripted messages and store them in the cloud to be accessed anywhere, anytime.

• Organize and label messages clearly so you can quickly pull specific messages during an emergency. Dropping successful social media messages and scripts used in the past into a Google Drive document is an easy way to start.

Create an operational organization chart for communications roles.

• Develop clearly defined roles; know who will take the lead, take care of the media, work with the public on trap lines and fill other relevant roles throughout the duration of a wildfire.
• Include a staffing plan for 24/7 operations.
• Practice the plan during training exercises, and review the plan periodically.

Don’t forget about non-English speaking populations.

• Have a plan for communicating with limited English populations (LEPs); consider developing a guide that identifies where LEP’s are located in your community, what critical information will need to reach them and who will help you communicate with them. If nothing else, have a list of contact numbers for translators of different languages in different regions across the state.

Have a plan for how you will stay up-to-date.

• The governor will request detailed information, like acreage burned and number of people injured, and you will also need to get critical information to constituents in a timely manner throughout the event.
• Make sure local agencies know what to report and have contact information for who to report to before a wildfire starts.

Be prepared mentally.

• Wildfires are long-term, high-risk events; know how you will work through the physical and mental exhaustion that comes with working 12-hour shifts for months on-end. Losing fire fighters or the residents you’re working to keep safe is always a possibility – have a coping strategy to ensure personal emotions don’t get in the way of continuing your duties.

Consider purchasing or contracting mobile cellphone tower equipment.

• Cells on Wheels (COWS) can be a valuable tool if local cell service goes down or if a disaster occurs in a rural area with limited reception. These can also be useful in high-profile or large-scale events, when an increase in cell phone usage can disrupt service.

Explore Virtual Operations Support Group (VOSG) options.

• A VOSG can be activated to provide virtual social media monitoring and management, or perform other specific functions during an incident.
• Recruit social media-savvy volunteers from across the state, develop protocols and train them before a disaster.
• Assign a VOSG team leader who can serve as your point of contact and lead VOSG operations.

Build a strong Social Media presence.

• Keep your state emergency management social media accounts active even when a wildfire is not burning.
• Encourage local media to follow you; they can embed your tweets and help spread key messages during a wildfire.