By Annie Farber
The response to the October 1 explosion at a New York City Housing Authority building in the Bronx provided a master class in immediate response to an emergency. While questions remain regarding the cause, the City’s quick, transparent response helped minimize panic and secure more balanced coverage for the country’s largest public housing authority, which has been plagued by reputational issues for years.
Most organizations do not have NYC’s level of resources to devote to emergency communications; however, there are some key takeaways from the response that organizations of all sizes should keep in mind during crises:
Be Prepared to Act Quickly
Within a half hour of the 8:10 AM explosion, the City posted its first update via its official emergency notification X (Twitter) account. This post was closely followed by further updates from other City accounts, including NYC Emergency Management (NYCEM) and FDNY, about the efforts underway by first responders to assess the damage and prioritize public safety. At 11 AM, Mayor Eric Adams, leaders from FDNY and NYCEM, and the Bronx Borough President were together in the Bronx delivering a live press conference to provide key updates from the ground.
While it is unlikely that most organizations could replicate this exact cadence of communications, every organization can adopt the principles of the City’s response by identifying in advance key channels for communicating in a crisis, preparing high-level leaders (such as a CEO or Board Chair) to serve as the voice of the organization, determining which scenarios require additional messengers to deliver more tactical updates, and identifying who those additional messengers should be.
Ultimately, these principles boil down to one key lesson: the more thorough and detailed your crisis protocols, the more efficient, timely, and well-coordinated your public response will be.
Lead Messages with Human Impact, Closely Followed by Actions Taken to Mitigate that Impact
During an emergency, the first questions on the minds of the general public are usually, “are my loved ones and I safe?” and “what do I need to do?” Both of these questions were answered within the first 90 seconds of the City’s press conference. All spokespeople should keep this approach in mind when considering emergency response so that the most important information is prioritized.
In times of crisis, leaders are often overwhelmed with background information and immediate logistical demands, making it difficult to weed out the non-essential communications. It is imperative that spokespeople proactively address the human impact-focused questions that anyone paying attention—and particularly media—will ask first. Audiences will absorb any necessary background and/or logistical information more effectively if it comes after they understand the impact of a crisis and how the effects are being mitigated.
Prioritize Ongoing Transparency
In the days following the explosion, the City demonstrated transparency by maintaining a cadence of periodic updates. City agencies and leaders have communicated on X, sharing updates about first responders’ efforts, recaps of the response, and information on City agencies’ path forward to ensure resident and community safety. While response and mitigation efforts continue in the Bronx, we can expect to hear more in the coming weeks and months about investigations into the cause of the explosion and continued building repairs.
It may be tempting to stop communicating about a crisis once the immediate threat has passed. However, continued transparency, particularly when public safety is involved, can help an organization build and maintain trust following a crisis. This does not mean that communications channels need to be dominated by the situation for weeks or months at a time; more proactive communications can be mixed in with periodic updates on next steps stemming from the crisis. What’s most important is that key stakeholders understand that they will receive proactive updates as necessary, preventing unnecessary questions and speculation about next steps.
New York City’s immediate response to the Bronx explosion demonstrates how organizations can take control of the narrative to minimize reputational damage in times of crisis. By effectively and proactively communicating steps to respond to and address the emergency, the City avoided adding criticism around their response to an inevitably challenging news cycle. Looking ahead, this effective response also adds a layer of reputational protection that will be particularly crucial if investigations into the explosion find that the City was in any way at fault.
Leaders charting a crisis strategy can look to the City’s approach as a model for a strong, rapid, and transparent response. All organizations—no matter their size or resources—can emulate this approach by having a plan in place to allow immediate response, focusing messaging on human impact, and maintaining ongoing transparent communications.