Your fellow city and village leaders across the state offer these brief suggestions about managing in the midst of crisis: 

1.    The League has an emergency communications consultant on retainer. Use them. Please follow the process outlined here to access this service if your municipality is experiencing a crisis.  

2.    Contact your insurance company. They will want to assign an attorney right away.

3.    Take your time on the first message; knowing the circumstances is important. Don’t get pushed by the news to say something you’re not ready to say.

4.    Provide a message for use by your people who answer the phones, including dispatch, admin assistants, etc. They will get calls right away.

5.    Ask your Police (and Fire) Chiefs what they need and tackle the items you can; your support goes a long way.

6.    DON’T try to do your Chiefs’ jobs. They are trained specifically for these events; support them but don’t get in their way. 

7.    Stop by and talk with those impacted to show you care and listen. 

8.    Communicate to your staff and elected officials regularly.

9.    When the dust settles just a bit, communicate “something normal” from your city - the public longs to see a return to consistency and stability.