Question: Message Strategies: Communicating in a Crisis One of your company's worst nightmares has just come true. EQ Industrial Services (EQIS), based in Wayne, Michigan, operates a number of facilities around the country that dispose of, recycle, and transport hazardous chemical wastes. Last night, explosions and fi res broke out at the company's Apex, North Carolina, facility, forcing the evacuation of 17,000 local residents
Your task: It's now Friday, the day aft er the fi re. Write a brief post for the company's blog, covering the following points:
? A fi re broke out at the Apex facility at approximately 10 p.m. Thursday.
? No one was in the facility at the time.
? Because of the diverse nature of the materials stored at the plant, the cause of the fi re is not yet known.
? Rumors that the facility stores extremely dangerous chlorine gas and that the fi re was spreading to other nearby businesses are not true.
? Special industrial fi refi ghters hired by EQIS have already brought the fi re under control.
? Residents in the immediate area were evacuated as a precaution, and they should be able to return to their homes tomorrow, pending permission from local authorities.
? Several dozen residents were admitted to local hospitals with complaints of breathing problems, but most have been released already; about a dozen emergency responders were treated as well.
? At this point (Friday aft ernoon), tests conducted by the North Carolina State Department of Environment and Natural Resources "had not detected anything out of the ordinary in the air." Conclude by thanking the local police and fi re departments for their assistance and directing readers to EQIS's toll-free hot line for more information. 36 It's now Friday, the day aft er the fi re. Write a brief post for the company's blog, covering the following points:
? A fire broke out at the Apex facility at approximately 10 p.m. Thursday.
? No one was in the facility at the time.
? Because of the diverse nature of the materials stored at the plant, the cause of the fi re is not yet known.
? Rumors that the facility stores extremely dangerous chlorine gas and that the fi re was spreading to other nearby businesses are not true.
? Special industrial fi refi ghters hired by EQIS have already brought the fi re under control.
? Residents in the immediate area were evacuated as a precaution, and they should be able to return to their homes tomorrow, pending permission from local authorities.
? Several dozen residents were admitted to local hospitals with complaints of breathing problems, but most have been released already; about a dozen emergency responders were treated as well.
? At this point (Friday aft ernoon), tests conducted by the North Carolina State Department of Environment and Natural Resources "had not detected anything out of the ordinary in the air." Conclude by thanking the local police and fi re departments for their assistance and directing readers to EQIS's toll-free hot line for more information.