UW News

Archive

September 27, 2007

Critical conversations: A growing toolbox for communications during an emergency

Photo by Kathy Sauber
UW Assistant Police Chief Ray Wittmier speaks with reporters the morning of April 2, 2007, after the murder of staff member Rebecca Griego in Gould Hall.

Events last spring at the UW and nationwide have put the spotlight of public attention on how university campuses react to emergency situations, be they natural disasters, accidents or acts of violence.

The UW has long had a written plan for emergency response (you can read it online at http://www.washington.edu/emergency). The plan divides emergencies into three categories of increasing severity, and indicates whether the UW Emergency Operations Center (soon to be moved to the new UW Tower) should be activated.

Briefly put, Level 1 is a situation that normal UW emergency responses can handle without need of the EOC. This is also considered the “stand-by” mode. Level 2 is an emergency incident that causes damage or interruption to UW operations, where partial or full activation of the EOC is needed and the UW may be the only affected entity. Level 3 means widespread disaster conditions requiring that the UW be self-sufficient for hours or days and the EOC is fully activated.

The purpose of the plan is to protect and save lives, protect property, manage immediate communications and information regarding University response operations and campus safety, provide for essential services and operations, provide information to support decision-making, and to manage University resources effectively during an emergency.

But the murder of Rebecca Griego at the UW and the shootings at Virginia Tech in April added a new sense of urgency to the questions of when and how the UW’s emergency plan should be used.

As Norm Arkans, UW executive director of media relations and communications, told building coordinators and other emergency responders in a July 25 meeting, the UW needs better ways to communicate broadly and rapidly to the whole campus. “We are much more attuned to the need to be fast,” Arkans said. Scott Mah, assistant vice president for Computing & Communications Service Delivery & Support, noted, “Each event teaches us something.”

The question, then, is: How should the campus community — a virtual city of 60,000 souls — be informed of an emergency situation, a catastrophic event or a growing danger? There is no one simple answer, and new questions arise even as the discussion continues.

Crisis communications at the UW are a work in progress, using new technologies as they emerge for levels of response appropriate to various situations. A Crisis Communications Committee chaired by Arkans and Mah has been hard at work over the summer crafting a new crisis communications plan for the UW that provides guidelines for communication within the University and to media and the public in the event of an emergency.

The plan states that after an emergency situation has been identified, the following procedures begin to take place:


  • Assessment: “People who become aware of a potential crisis or emergency must contact the Office of Media Relations and Communications.” The Executive Director or his designee will decide whether to invoke this plan and convene a Crisis Communications Team.
  • The Crisis Communications Team: The team may include Media Relations and Communications, University Police, Computing & Communications, Human Resources, Student Life, the Attorney General’s office, the Office of the President, and the affected unit(s). The Crisis Communications Team will designate a spokesperson — usually the highest-ranking person with direct knowledge of the events, or the executive director of Media Relations and Communications.
  • Notifying key constituencies: The Crisis Communications Team will determine which groups need to be informed, and in what order. The report notes that “effective communication will help quell rumors, maintain morale and ensure public safety.” Key constituencies include students, faculty, staff, parents of students, the Board of Regents, public officials, alumni, area neighbors, the general public and the news media.
  • Fact sheet: Such a document should be prepared as soon as possible, time stamped, reviewed by the executive director and provided to reporters by the spokesperson. It should be updated as new information becomes available.
  • Alerting the media: The Director of News & Information, in consultation with the executive director, will decide on the best way(s) of reaching the news media. In the case of a prolonged emergency, the director may create a Joint Information Center and/or news media briefing center to coordinate information flow. The report states, “In general, the University will welcome reporters and allow them as much access as public safety and good taste permit.”

There is an ever-growing set of options available to achieve this aim: It’s called the communications toolbox. Here are some of the tools listed and comments about their effectiveness:


  • UW Web site alerts: A great way to share information if the community knows where to look, but it does not provide “active notification.” Currently, staff members are working on coordinating the same message on the UW public home page, UWIN and MyUW, as well as the UW Emergency Management home page.
  • www.emergency.washington.edu: This is an alternate UW Web site based outside the Puget Sound region that will be updated with critical information in the event that a catastrophic event disrupts the Seattle-area infrastructure.
  • UW Information hotline, 206-UWS-INFO (897-4636) or 1-866-UWS-INFO (897-4636): As with the Web site, effective but only if people know to look there.
  • UW ListServ E-mail: Provides instant notification, but only when recipients are near their e-mail or portable devices to check it. Building coordinators and deans, directors and chairs are two key groups that can be notified rapidly in this manner.
  • Bulk e-mail: Takes several hours for complete delivery, and is dependent on people checking their e-mail account.
  • Short message service (SMS): Provides active notification, but only to those subscribing. Beginning Sept. 26, faculty, staff and students may sign up for UW alert, a new crisis notification service that delivers text messages to mobile devices such as cell phones. Visit www.washington.edu/alert for more information.
  • 206-UWS-I’M OK and 1-888-UWS-I’M OK: A registry under consideration and intended to provide a way for faculty, staff and students to report their status following a major emergency event.
  • An outdoor public address system is being considered to improve communication with major outdoor areas such as Red Square and the campus mass assembly areas.

Other tools include faxes, pager systems, two-way radios and runners to carry information across campus when other systems are down. The media, too — local television and radio — can play a critical role in keeping the campus and outside community informed of ongoing events.

Based on the timing, location and severity of the event, any or all of the options in the communications toolbox may be put into use.

But even these reports are not the final word on UW emergency preparedness or communications — that conversation will continue, involving the entire campus community.

Three steps if you see an emergency situation:


  • Call 911.
  • Call your supervisor.
  • Call UW News & Information, 206-543-2580.

Stay informed — sign up for disaster, crisis alerts: http://www.washington.edu/emergency