Use S0cial Media to communicate with citizens During Extreme Weather Events

Reprinted from CitiesSpeak.org, the offi  cial blog of the National League of Cities.

Every month seems to bring an extreme  weather event, and it will only continue  with climate change. Social media has  allowed local leaders to communicate with  their constituents as quickly as possible,  which in extreme weather situations, can  be life-saving.

Use Graphics To Plan Ahead

Current weather-tracking technology has allowed local leaders  an opportunity to prepare before disaster hits about a week in  advance. Cities should alert citizens to any upcoming extreme  weather forecasts so they have enough time to prepare and  gather supplies.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)  has an impressive collection of infographics available for  public use. The collection covers just about every possible  emergency situation, from winter storms to extreme heat  waves - and provides an easy way to offer safety measures  to your citizens to prepare for the upcoming event. Visit  the Center of Preparedness and Response at cdc.gov/cpr/ infographics to download them for free.

BE READY! WINTER WEATHER - An infographic from the Center of  Preparedness and Response, part of the CDC, highlights safety measures  to prepare for winter weather. This infographic is part of a collection with  easy-to-understand graphics to cover just about every possible emergency  situation, from winter storms to extreme heat. The entire collection is free  for download and use at cdc.gov/cpr/infographics.

Keep Your Constituents Informed

Throughout the extreme weather event, prepare ongoing  updates to keep citizens informed of their options. Citizens  will always be looking for the latest information.

Here are common helpful updates:

• When was the last update, and has any of that  information changed?

• Has essential public transportation or roadways been  cut off?

• Are any new shelters available?

• Has water accessibility been impacted?

• Are there any helplines that can be shared?

Cities Using Socials Effectively

There is no shame in copying an effective communication  strategy. See what other cities have done and adapt them  to fi t your needs.

The next page features some some examples of cities that are  keeping their citizens up to date on Twitter, showing graphics  with important addresses, phone numbers and linking to  external websites with more information.

Create Extreme Weather Updates For Your City For Free

We prepared templates for extreme  weather social updates in the app  Canva, which are free to use. You can  personalize the text however you see  fi t, and be sure to add your local logo  so your citizens can trust it as an offi  cial  update. To access the fi les, fi nd the links  in NLC’s online version of this article  by going to nlc.org and searching for  “Extreme Weather Updates.” There are  options for versions for Twitter/LinkedIn/ Facebook and Instagram. ■

(Right)  CITIES USING SOCIALS EFFECTIVELY -  The cities of Cleveland  and Kansas City used Twitter to keep citizens  informed during an extreme winter weather event  in December. Visit nlc.org to access templates for  creating your own weather messaging.