In August of 2016, the Blue Cut Fire flew through the Cajon Pass, an area very near the church where I served. The fire caused more than 82,000 people to evacuate their homes with very little warning. I took this photo as I was leaving work the day the fire started.
While we didn't have natural disaster communication plan in place ahead of this fire, we learned a lot going through it. I knew that this event would prepare us (and others) to minister more effectively amidst unexpected challenges, so I took a lot of notes throughout the process. Here are six major lessons we learned.
If you don't have a plan in place for handling communication in a natural disaster, check out the free Disaster Relief Plan. This PDF gives you a great starting point to customize for the specifics of your ministry.
The first priority when a natural disaster strikes is to slow down. It feels counterintuitive, but if we don't slow down, we'll put ourselves at risk of becoming overwhelmed.
Natural disasters can be scary! Just because we are thinking through effective communication for the church doesn't mean we suddenly cease to be human.
Practical tip: Take a walk around the office when you feel the need to move faster. Forcing yourself to take breaks is critical for lasting through what will be an intense stretch.
As soon as we began to see ministry opportunities emerging, a group of us sat down and clearly defined each of our roles. Sometimes they align with your job description, sometimes they don't. We were very clear with each other that no decision or announcement would be made until the appropriate point person was consulted.
It's easy to feel like everything is on your shoulders when a crisis comes. By having this conversation, you acknowledge that it isn't all on your shoulders and the others involved in decision making can help keep you accountable in remembering that.
Practical tip: Write out the main areas that need oversight and list the name of the "owner" next to it. In our situation, it was communications, logistics, community partnerships, and pastoral care.
Your church is a ministry, not a news network. Our job wasn't to post the latest number of acres burned, the number of people displaced, or how contained the fire was. Our job was to facilitate ministry.
You will be tempted to become a news network. Resist that temptation. You will be asked by your congregation or those connected to your organization to be a news network. Resist that temptation. Focus all your energy on ministry.
Practical tip: When asked for news updates, respond by directing them to the place they can find the latest updates.
When people are afraid, they want answers immediately. When we feel that pressure, we are tempted to act as quickly as possible. The problem is that hasty communication increases the potential of something being incorrect.
Remember how we assigned a point person for different areas? Keeping them included helps you verify information.
Practical tip: Identify one or two people who can be another set of eyes for you. They don't have to be involved in any other part of the process beyond checking your communication.
Our church became a distribution hub for donations during the disaster. While we tried hard to make sure our communication was accurate, we couldn't control what others posted. A local organization shared that we were giving away free clothes, diapers, and water to anyone–regardless of their impact by the fire.
Those who donated were frustrated. That wasn't what they expected to happen. We were frustrated too! That wasn't what was actually happening.
Normally a post like that wouldn't be of much concern. But this post was seen by almost 100,000 people. Yikes!
Rather than amp up and criticize the organization, we contacted them privately and asked them to adjust the post. We then posted clarity on our page without calling them out. Crisis is stressful for everyone. Be gracious.
Practical tip: If something goes wrong, be kind and try to get it resolved in a private conversation.
No matter how hard you try, communication amidst a crisis won't be perfect. That's ok. Do your best to be clear and accurate and you'll be fine. Don't hesitate to own a lack of clarity, either. People just want to know what's going on.
Practical tip: How you handle your mistakes says a lot about who you are as a church. When you own mistakes, it actually builds a lot of good will in your community.
When we went through the Blue Cut Fire, I remember being stressed personally. I was worried about my family, my friends, and the community at large.
One of the biggest helps in this situation was being in communication with a good friend that didn't live in our area. Having a perspective from outside the crisis was incredibly helpful.
If you find overwhelmed trying to communicate amidst crisis, reach out and let's have a conversation. Just having someone to bounce ideas off of can make a huge difference.
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