When a warning has ended, what do you say?

When a warning has ended, do you send a message or do you let silence speak for you? Do you let the public figure out that the coast is clear, the threat is over, the hazard has ended? Do you hope that they eventually come out of their shelters, resume their activities, return to normal without any notice from you? Or do you actively issue a message?

If you issue a message, do you tell people what has happened and assure them that the threat has ended? Do you let them know, in unambiguous terms, what they can do now that the coast is clear and they are no longer in danger?

Or, do you use a blend of operational and technical language that relays something very specific (to those who are "in the know") but leaves others scratching their heads in confusion?

In today's adventures in creative messaging, we see a Wireless Emergency Alert that includes the words "Officials have released the Evacuation Warnings", which appears to represent a form of "all clear" or, what my research team would call a "post-alert message," that appears to attempt the double duty of ending the warning and providing some sort of guidance in one. Let me explain...

"Release the Evacuation Warning"

Much of the time, when we see alert and warning jargon a single word or phrase is used to represent both the threat and the protective action in one. Take for instance "evacuation warning," which represents not only a stage of a hazard but should also trigger specific preparedness actions. One would only know a true definition and application of "evacuation warning" if they had been educated beforehand. In fact, in our research we have found that most people are unaware of the difference between an "evacuation warning" and an "evacuation order;" most commonly people report that a warning means "take action now" rather than to "prepare to take action." While this may not be a critical issue (we are generally more concerned that people know that evacuation order means "leave now!"), it becomes a problem if evacuation planning depends upon phased evacuations and not a rush of people attempting to leave because they got an alert and didn't understand what it meant.

The language in the WEA above that says " Officials released the Evacuation Warnings" is jargon that is new to us at The Warn Room. We can assume, based upon the remainder of the message, that "released" means that they have ended the evacuation warning. And if this is the case, that would mean that people within the zones included in the message no longer need to prepare to leave. It's an interesting way to tell people that the Evacuation Warnings are no longer in effect (thus ending the initial message) that people in these neighborhoods are no longer under an active threat (indicating that they are now safe) and they no longer need to prepare (they can end their activity and return to normal). I sure hope that my interpretation about this is correct!

Recent research on post-alert messages has shown that people need closure after receiving an alert that required them to take action. It is up to the message sender to close that communication loop by issuing a clear and reassuring message. In doing so, alerting authorities are not only aiding message receivers' understanding, they are also boosting their own credibility by demonstrating that they know how to communicate effectively and that they have managed the threat. In this case, the Gifford Fire Officials did close the loop by issuing a message, but it could have done so in a manner that called attention to the threat and the actions that people had initially been told to take. In this case they focused primarily on the message itself - they "released the evacuation warnings" rather than telling people it was safe.

Wildfire messaging is a real challenge - from beginning to end. There is great uncertainty and conditions can change quickly. The use of coded language for operations, including zone-based alerting, relies on a hope that the public understands and can act upon technical jargon. If, however, the public does not have the right training or insight, they are left to interpret language on their own. Under conditions where people need to act quickly, this can lead to dire outcomes.

For more recommended contents, be sure to download The Warning Lexicon - it's free and offers step-by-step instructions on how to write a better warning message.

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