5 types of Shelter in Place warnings

I recently heard a podcast where the guest described "common knowledge." They explained it this way: you know that I know, and I know that you know, and you know that I know that you know, and I know that you know that I know.

Stated more simply: we all know something and we know that everyone else knows that same thing.

And this is important when thinking about how we describe actions in warning messages. Not everything is common knowledge. In fact the words that you choose to use are more likely to be well known to you, as an expert, than to your audience. One of my colleagues describes this as "FUBU" - for us, by us - which is a good characterization of a lot of warnings I find in the wild.

So, when I see an alert that says "shelter in place" I immediately begin to wonder, what is the "common knowledge" that the message is trying to evoke for a particular hazard?

In my thinking, there are at least five types of specific shelter in place warnings plus one that is sort of ambiguous. For each hazard below, the call to action "shelter in place" represent relevant guidance. What differs, however, are the instructions on HOW to shelter in place. Let's take a look:

1. TORNADO - go to an interior room on the lowest level of a sturdy building

2. SMOKE/ CHEMICAL SPILL / HAZARDOUS MATERIALS / RADIOLOGICAL RELEASE - go inside, close windows/doors/vents, turn off HVAC,

3. FLOOD - go inside to the highest level of a sturdy building

4. ACTIVE THREAT - go inside, lock doors and windows, do not answer the door

5. SEVERE STORM - go indoors, stay away from windows

AMBIGUOUS - stay off the roads (maybe for flood, blizzard, winter storm)

Each of these differ due to the active threat agent and the harm it can cause if people are exposed. Going inside to an interior room on the lowest level of a sturdy building during a tornado will protect people if the roof gets ripped off a house and debris are flying. Going inside, closing windows and doors, and turning off HVAC systems will prevent bad air from being drawn into the building when chemicals and fumes are floating around outside. Going inside, locking doors and windows, making the choice not to answer the door, prevents a bad actor from entering a home and keeps people out of harm's way during an active threat/law enforcement event. Etc., etc..

However, without clear instruction on HOW to perform that shelter in place, we are relying on "common knowledge" about a) the hazard and b) the associated protective actions.

This is why every time I see an alert with the guidance "shelter in place" I'm looking for the instructions that follow. Take for instance this one that was issued for a flood event:

It's a fine message. It includes the message source, hazard, hazard impact, location, guidance, and an element of time. It even includes a statement about where to find more information. But those words in ALL CAPS: SHELTER IN PLACE are doing a lot of work here.

What raises questions for me is the focus on the roads. There is an impassable highway, the conditions of another road are unknown; people who choose to drive will do so at their own risk. It makes me wonder: is this a call for people to shelter in place for a flood - as in, go inside to the highest level of a sturdy building to escape rising floodwaters? Or is this one of those more ambiguous calls for people to simply "stay off the roads"?

Perhaps one might say this falls into a category of "common knowledge" and I'm asking for too much specificity in a message. Perhaps they are correct for this warning. After all, based upon the message alone, it doesn't appear that this active threat is actively threatening in such a way that people need to take an immediate action to protect themselves. And I also know that writing that is going to make some readers say "if it is not severe, urgent, and certain, requiring an immediate action, maybe a WEA should not have been issued."

However, in an instance when the threat is truly dire, wouldn't it be useful to explain to people HOW to shelter in place? Especially if there are specific instructions that can help to increase self-efficacy (i.e., ability to perform the action)?

If you're interested in learning more about writing effective messages, check out more blogs on The Warn Room, and be sure to download the Warning Lexicon. It is a free resource that can help you to design messages that motivate action.