|
This week, Mother Nature gave us a “pointed” reminder that Sonoma County is still susceptible to fires and that we are squarely in fire season. Our hearts go out to those who lost homes or were displaced as a result of the Point Fire. We also give enormous thanks to the brave and tenacious firefighters who worked 24/7 to mitigate the fire and protect residents and structures. Thanks too to our elected officials and local media outlets for keeping us informed. We know some of our industry partners in Dry Creek did need to cease business operations, and we so appreciate that efficient response - we’re grateful all were safe. We also thank the partner businesses in that area for keeping SCT informed of your needs and conditions at the properties.
For those of you without a crisis plan, we encourage you to put one together. SCT has a “fill in the blank” plan that can be customized for your use. That plan is on SonomaCounty.com and can be accessed through this link. More information about being prepared for crisis situations can be found in the Be Prepared section of the Industry portal. For those of you in vacation rental properties, SCT has informational materials that can be downloaded and used to help ensure your guests are prepared.
We also encourage everyone to be very mindful about the messaging and images posted on social media. The Point Fire was largely contained to one area of the county, but when visuals are shown that perpetuate fear and convey misinformation that expand the impact of the fire, the entire county loses. Much of SCT’s work during a crisis is correcting misinformation shared via social media or reported by news outlets. SCT does have a list of suggested best practices related to messaging during a crisis on the Be Prepared page.
During the next several months, SCT will be carefully monitoring the various channels that report fire. We will deploy our crisis plan as needed to help ensure that we, along with the various agencies and organizations, help manage crisis situations as they arise. Thank you for your partnership in helping us all successfully get through this season.
| 
