Notes to broadcasters
Natural disasters – like floods, droughts, hurricanes etc. – and health pandemics such as cholera are becoming more common, in part because of climate change. During an emergency, you will want to communicate key messages, alerts, and warnings on a variety of topics that are important to your community and emergency workers, including:
- Evacuation plans
- Curfews
- Relief services and social support
- Areas most impacted
- Available assistance
- Protective measures
- Needs of victims
These important messages should accompany opportunities for community members to check in, reporting on how their area was impacted, their personal status, and how relief efforts are being conducted. Consider sharing these messages on your social media as well.
Well-conceived and effectively delivered messages can help ensure the safety of your listeners, facilitate response efforts, instill public confidence, and help families reunite.
Remember these principles for good communication on the radio during emergencies.
- Use plain language and common terminology. Do not use slang. Use the local language.
- Avoid using technical jargon unless necessary.
- Keep your messages short and simple. Remember that somebody on the other end needs to write down the essential elements. It’s often good to repeat key information once or twice.
- Speak clearly and slowly so you can be easily understood.
- Address people in the tone they are used to. This includes adapting the following messages to the style of your station and programming.
Disasters and emergencies are times of high stress, so it may be difficult for your audience to listen, process, and act on the information you are sharing. Technology failure may also mean that not everyone can tune it. Keep your messages clear, concise, and repeat them frequently. Use our radio spots as examples for crafting your own messages with information from local authorities.
Timeliness and accuracy are particularly important during an emergency, when messages can affect public safety. Communicate clearly how long a directive or alert is relevant for, and update as necessary. It’s also important that messages are consistent across various channels. If you can verify information with a disaster response coordination agency or department of the government, this can ensure that various media channels are giving the same information to community members.
The themes of messaging you are sharing during an emergency will differ from those you share before or after. But communication before and after an emergency is just as important. Read our radio spots on emergency preparedness for ideas on what to share in advance of an emergency. After an emergency, try to report on the impact, including stories of resilience, recovery, and preparation to better withstand the next disaster.
Script
Spot #1: Evacuation, emergency supplies, and curfews
Please note that emergency supplies, including (mention the kind of emergency supplies), are available at the following locations (describe the locations).
Finally, the (local, regional, or national) government notifies all residents in (describe the area) that they are under a curfew order and are required not to leave their dwelling or emergency shelter or emergency area between (mention the beginning of the curfew and the end of the curfew.)
Spot #2: Tips on evacuating and staying safe
Here are four tips to remember:
First, if you need to evacuate your home or village, make sure you don’t leave anyone behind. Some people, such as the elderly, those living with disabilities and the chronically sick, may need help to evacuate—don’t forget them.
(optional) Second, where there is a risk of heavy rain and floods, keep yourself and your children safe from harm. Don’t cross rivers or let your children play near flooded rivers or in muddy water.
Third, in a disaster, some people may try to take advantage of vulnerable people, including women, children and young people. Don’t let this happen to members of your family, and watch out for others.
Fourth, if you and your family are moving from your home to an evacuation centre or other safe place, try to hold hands and stay together so no one gets lost along the way.
We are all facing this disaster together and together we will help each other to recover from it.
Spot #3: Community check-in (for example, for a flood)
Spot #4: Kill “germs” by boiling water during and after an emergency
And one of the simplest methods of making it safe is boiling.
First, it’s energy-intensive. Each person uses about five litres of water per day. And water needs to be brought to a “rolling” boil.
The other disadvantage is that boiling changes the taste of the water.
Spot #5:
Spot #6: Recognize the signs of heat exhaustion in a heat wave
Recognize the signs of heat exhaustion: heavy sweating, dizziness, disorientation, diarrhea, headaches, muscle cramps, cool clammy skin, fast and deep breathing, and possible vomiting. These are signs of dehydration. You need to find a cool place to rest and to drink salty water. Take off tight clothing and avoid hot drinks.
Let’s stay safe during these hot times.
Acknowledgements
Contributed by: Vijay Cuddeford, managing editor, Farm Radio International, and Kathryn Burnham, Manager, Radio Network Service, Farm Radio International.
Information sources
Health considerations for refugees. June 2003. Farm Radio International. https://scripts.farmradio.fm/radio-script/health-considerations-for-refugees/
Knowledge, attitudes and practice around heatwave in Karachi. December 2020. START Network HANDS Pakistan and Welt Hunger Hilfe. https://ghhin.org/wp-content/uploads/Knowledge__attitude_and_practice_around_heatwaves_in_Karachi__following_a_forecast-based_heatwave_messaging_project..pdf