PRESS RELEASES. From San Mateo County Executive’s Office, July 9th and 11th, 2025.
County Brings Noted Crisis Communications Expert to Alert and Warning Seminar
Redwood City — San Mateo County Emergency Management today hosted a comprehensive Alert and Warning seminar bringing together nearly 100 emergency management professionals from 37 organizations across eight Bay Area counties to address critical gaps in emergency communication systems that have contributed to preventable deaths in recent disasters.
The seminar, featuring internationally recognized crisis communication expert Dr. Jeannette Sutton, comes as this week’s devastating Texas Hill Country floods — where floodwaters rose 22 feet in just two hours — serve as a stark reminder of how communication failures during emergencies can cost lives. With California facing increasing wildfire and flood risks, the timing underscores the urgent need for Bay Area communities to strengthen their emergency alert systems before disaster strikes.
“Alerts and warnings are literally life-saving infrastructure—as critical to public safety as our roads, bridges, and hospitals,” said Dr. Shruti Dhapodkar, director of San Mateo County Emergency Management. “We didn’t wait for a crisis to expose our gaps. We proactively sought expert evaluation of our communications to become a model for how alert systems should work—and we’re fortunate to have operational partners across cities and neighboring counties committed to getting this right together. That collective coordination is rare in emergency management, yet it’s a necessity for effective alerting in the moments that matter most.”
Research Reveals Opportunities for Enhanced Emergency Communications
Sutton’s analysis of emergency messaging systems has identified significant opportunities for improvement in how communities communicate during crises. Her research reveals widespread patterns across the nation where alert systems fail to reach their full life-saving potential.
“When we rely on technical jargon in moments that demand clear, actionable language, we’re not maximizing our potential to save lives,” said Sutton, founder of The Warn Room and associate professor at the University at Albany. “Every second counts when floodwaters can rise 22 feet in two hours — our communications must be immediately clear and actionable.”
Evidence-Based Solutions for Life-Saving Communications
The seminar introduced Sutton’s Five Elements Content Framework and Warning Lexicon—research-based tools covering 48 hazards and 112 protective action statements that eliminate guesswork during critical incidents. San Mateo County is one of the first county in the United States to implement this evidence-based framework.
Participants received 45 tested message templates for the most frequent hazards emergency managers face, developed through rigorous research.
“Her research into wildfire alerts reveals that counties use five different terms to trigger evacuation — creating dangerous confusion when lives depend on immediate action,” noted Ryan Reynolds, assistant director of Emergency Management.
Leadership Commitment and Regional Collaboration
County Executive Mike Callagy gave welcoming remarks, kicking off the event and emphasizing the County’s proactive approach to emergency preparedness: “We’re not here to be reactive; we’re here to be proactive and forward-thinking so we can serve our residents when they need us most. This initiative embodies the County of San Mateo’s commitment to serving our public before, during, and after disasters. We are here with all our operational area partners and neighboring counties because when it comes to emergency management, we are one unified team, one fight. We must be at our best when disasters are at their worst.”
Callagy stressed the urgency of the work, noting recent disasters.
“The devastating events we’ve witnessed in Texas this week serve as a stark reminder of why this work cannot wait. Natural disasters don’t follow our timelines—they demand that we act with urgency and purpose now,” he said.
The seminar emphasized that effective emergency communication requires regional coordination.
“We succeed or fail together,” Dhapodkar said. “When any one of our alerts work better, that benefits all of us. When our communications are clear, that strengthens the entire Bay Area.”
Lalo Rubio, San Mateo County’s Alert & Warning Coordinator, presented a detailed case study of January 2025 Los Angeles wildfire alert failures and identified national patterns where similar challenges persist across four disaster regions. Rubio, who brings experience in emergency messaging at national, state, and local levels, will host “Learn with Lalo” office hour sessions this summer and fall to provide ongoing support for participating organizations.
Building Trust Through Better Communication
The initiative addresses a critical challenge: rebuilding public trust in government communications. “Decades of inconsistent messaging and communication failures during critical moments have left many residents skeptical of official warnings precisely when they need to trust us most,” Dr. Dhapodkar[MD1]Â noted.
When people lack trust in emergency communications, they delay taking protective action, seek confirmation from unofficial sources, or disregard warnings altogether. The seminar’s evidence-based approach aims to restore confidence through consistent, clear, and actionable messaging.
About Dr. Jeannette Sutton
Sutton began her career as a trauma chaplain and victim advocate, including serving at Columbine High School, before becoming the world’s leading expert on disaster warning communications. Her real-world experience witnessing how critical communication can be in life-or-death moments transformed her into a researcher whose work is revolutionizing emergency communications nationwide.
Moving Forward
Dr. Dhapodkar emphasized that this seminar represents just the beginning of a comprehensive effort to strengthen Bay Area emergency communications. The County’s proactive approach to improving alert systems before a crisis occurs sets a new standard for emergency preparedness.
“Our goal isn’t just to avoid the failures we’ve seen elsewhere,” Dhapodkar said. “Our goal is to become a model for alert and warning systems that save lives through clear, timely, actionable communication while building public trust and strengthening community resilience.”
Emergency Alert System Gets a Rewrite: Clearer Language, Faster Warnings
Bay Area emergency leaders move to eliminate confusing messages and reach more residents before disaster strikes.
REDWOOD CITY — With deadly floods sweeping the nation, the County of San Mateo this week convened a summit of Bay Area leaders to improve emergency alerts.
The unprecedented gathering included 37 organizations from eight counties — from San Francisco International Airport to rural fire departments — uniting around a sobering reality: flooding is America’s deadliest weather hazard, killing more people annually than hurricanes and tornadoes combined.
Deadly Week Underscores Summit’s UrgencyÂ
This week alone has seen catastrophic flooding across multiple states:Â
â–ş Texas: Over 121 deaths confirmed, 170 still missing from Hill Country floods
â–ş Chicago: “One-in-500-year” flash flood dumped 5+ inches in 90 minutes
â–ş New Mexico: Flash floods killed at least 3, including 2 children
â–ş North Carolina: Historic flooding from Tropical Storm Chantal
“The devastating events we’ve witnessed this week serve as a stark reminder of why this work cannot wait,” said County Executive Mike Callagy during summit opening remarks. “Natural disasters don’t follow our timelines—they demand that we act with urgency and purpose now.”
California’s Hidden Flood ThreatÂ
While wildfires dominate headlines, flooding poses California’s most widespread risk:Â
â–ş California ranks 3rd nationally in flood fatalities (340 deaths, 1959-2019)
â–ş 1 in 5 Californians (7+ million people) live in flood-risk areas
â–ş All 58 counties have severe flood damage history
â–ş $900+ billion in buildings at flood risk statewide
“Floods are getting flashier as our warming atmosphere holds more moisture,” said Dr. Shruti Dhapodkar, San Mateo County Emergency Management Director. “Every degree of warming increases atmospheric moisture capacity by 3 to 4 percent, making flash floods more deadly.”
Three Critical Alert & Warning Improvements IdentifiedÂ
The summit featured internationally recognized crisis communication expert Dr. Jeannette Sutton, whose research reveals how emergency communication systems can be transformed to save lives.Â
“When floodwaters can rise 22 feet in two hours — as they did in Texas — our communications must be immediately clear and actionable,” said Sutton, founder of The Warn Room. “Technical jargon in moments that demand clear language isn’t maximizing our potential to save lives.”
Summit participants identified three essential improvements:
1. Clear, Consistent and Complete Messaging: Emergency alerts must eliminate confusion by using standardized language across all agencies. Currently, counties use five different terms to trigger evacuation, creating dangerous confusion when lives depend on immediate action.
2. Strengthened Coordination: San Mateo County has nearly 500 people with alert-sending authority across agencies. “We all need to speak with one voice,” emphasized Dr. Dhapodkar. This requires an extremely high level of coordination and commitment to consistent, complete language that drives protective action.
3. Protecting the Most Vulnerable: Alert systems must reach beyond traditional channels to ensure people with disabilities, language barriers, and limited technology access receive life-saving information and assistance reaching safety.
Unprecedented Regional CollaborationÂ
Wednesday’s gathering represented rare unity across Bay Area emergency management, with participation from:Â
Key Participants:
â–ş Cities: From across the Bay Area, ranging in geographic size and population.
â–ş Regional Agencies: Bay Area UASI, CalFIRE, CalOES, SFO International Airport.
â–ş Fire Departments: Central County, North County Fire Authority, San Mateo County, San Mateo Consolidated, Redwood City, South San Francisco’
â–ş Law Enforcement: Atherton, Belmont, Burlingame, East Palo Alto, Hillsborough, Menlo Park, Pacifica, Redwood City, and San Mateo PD
“We succeed or fail together,” Dr. Dhapodkar emphasized. “When any one of our alerts work better, that benefits all of us. When our communications are clear, that strengthens the entire Bay Area.”
Evidence-Based Solutions ImplementedÂ
San Mateo County becomes among the first in the nation to implement Dr. Sutton’s research-based alert framework and templatized messaging that are available for free to any partner or county across the country to leverage in their own jurisdictions, featuring:Â
â–ş 45 tested message templates for frequent hazards
â–ş 112 protective action statements across 48 hazard types
â–ş Elimination of technical jargon in favor of clear, actionable language
SMC Alert & Warning Coordinator Lalo Rubio presented case studies of recent communication failures with four different large scale disasters in four regions across the US, including analysis of January’s Los Angeles wildfire alerts, and will host ongoing “Learn with Lalo” support sessions for participating organizations.
Unlike reactive disaster response, San Mateo County’s initiative addresses communication gaps before crisis strikes.
“We didn’t wait for a crisis to expose our gaps,” Dr. Dhapodkar noted. “We proactively sought expert evaluation to become a model for how alert systems should work. That collective coordination is rare in emergency management, yet it’s a necessity for effective alerting in the moments that matter most.”
Advanced Training Planned for FallÂ
San Mateo County’s initiative represents just the beginning of comprehensive alert and warning reform. Dr. Sutton will return in fall 2025 to provide extensive hands-on training for Bay Area emergency communicators.Â
As California enters peak fire season with over 3,900 fires already burning 182,000-plus acres statewide, and climate change makes extreme weather more frequent and intense, the seminar represents the foundation for Bay Area emergency communication excellence.Â
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Author: mdrag
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