Be prepared: Communicating in a crisis; the success or failure of managing a crisis depends upon the ability to communicate effectively--even within a legislature.

• Author: Wyatt, William

An earthquake centered near Olympia struck two state capitols on the morning of Feb. 28, 2001. Legislators and staff in Washington's capitol found themselves huddled together under tables and in doorways during an earthquake measuring 6.8 on the Richter scale. The tremors lasted less than a minute, but the quake left more than $1 billion of damage in its wake.

Included in that damage was the Washington Legislative Building. Built in 1926 and "earthquake-proofed" in the 1970s, the capitol sustained several large cracks in the dome, supporting columns were moved out of place and ceilings fell--all while the Legislature was meeting.

Due to the physical damage to the Capitol and most of the legislative offices, many legislators and members were without a place to call home. In the immediate aftermath of the tremor, Washington State Patrol officers and local law enforcement communicated via radio. However, as Washington Senator Jeanne Kohl-Welles recounts, while the pieces were being put back together, legislative leaders had to find creative means to communicate with their members. Where would the Legislature convene? How would the public contact their representatives? When would the legislative process begin again?

"The Department of General Administration, along with the secretary of the Senate and the chief clerk's offices were constantly communicating with members, staff and the general public via meetings, phone calls, e-mails, press releases and even Web pages," she said.

Farther south in Salem, Ore., the tremor struck as both the Senate and the House were convened for their daily sessions. The decorum in the legislative chambers changed rather rapidly says Legislative Administrator Dave Henderson. Legislators and staff didn't know whether to evacuate or to stay put. They were [MISSING TEXT FROM ORIGINAL PUBLISHER].

"The chambers for the House and Senate are some of the most earthquake-vulnerable areas in our capitol, so the leaders were looking for direction on whether we needed to evacuate the building," Henderson said. "By communicating via radio, we were able to direct an immediate inspection of the ceilings over the chambers and determine that they were structurally sound. We were able to communicate that to the leaders right away, along with a recommendation that there was no need to evacuate. Session was able to continue uninterrupted."

This is crisis communications. The concept is not a new one. With the advent of new technologies, however, planning for a crisis and knowing what to do beforehand have become more important. The Internet, 24-hour news programs, pagers, cell phones and personal digital assistants have created a way of life where people can receive news virtually any time and anywhere.

Being able to identify a crisis is the single most important aspect. But successful communications depends on several factors, not the least of which is developing a positive communications atmosphere within an organization and devising a plan to put into action when a disaster develops. When that organization is the legislature or one of its subgroups, communications can be very complex, and the potential for calamity can range from natural to political disaster.

CREATING A COMMUNICATIONS CULTURE

The...