in warnings it is location, location, location

In the coming weeks there will be a Disaster Zone Podcast with Professor Jeannette Sutton on the topic of Warnings. She is a warnings expert!  A recent LinkedIn posting by her pointed to the Warn Room article by her, Message personalization - what does that mean for a WEA?

Usually this blog provides general information that you can use in your professional life. In this case this blog post and the link provided is focused on specifics you can use to improve your warnings. A few real-world examples are used to help you see the challenges of not ensuring people know who is being warned. I recommend it for your reading. Not specifically mentioned in the article is the fact that an “all county” warning message was sent out in error by the Los Angeles County Office of Emergency Services. There was a pure technical glitch that somehow occurred in the system. There had been no attempt to send a message (at least what I read about it at the time). A software patch has been provided by the vendor providing the service to the county. A warning to you, “Warnings are very public and if you screw up, everyone knows it!”

Then, I’d like to comment on this quote from the linked article above, “For years, Dr. Dennis Mileti always started off his warning talks with a key fact that he wanted to drive home: it is difficult to get people to believe they are at risk.” While Dennis was talking about warnings when there was an immediate hazard, I think a larger challenge comes from people not recognizing or appreciating the risks associated with where they choose to live. A few months back the New York Times had this article with maps, Where Americans Have Been Moving Into Disaster-Prone Areas  It is clear as day for we who are in the business, but for the typical individual or family, they are focused on the house, the neighborhood, the schools, the commute, etc.

Eventually, as more areas of the United States continue to burn or experience storms of all types, people will get the message, but it will be slow in coming. Likely the cost and availability of property insurance will become a helpful determining factor.