Xenophon Launches 2020 Hurricane Preparedness Plan Services
“Storm Tracker” Supports Clients’ Hurricane Preparedness, Crisis Communication, Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery
WASHINGTON, D.C. (June 4, 2020) With the commencement of the 2020 hurricane season on June 1, Xenophon Strategies has launched its seasonal, “Storm Tracker,” a monitoring tool that is typically integrated into a client’s crisis management plan. The hurricane tracking service is designed to support clients’ disaster preparedness, crisis communication, and business continuity and disaster recovery plan for potential storms.
“The first rule of crisis management is to always be prepared,” said Xenophon Strategies President and CEO David Fuscus. “The Storm Tracker helps clients anticipate problems early and allows them to set their crisis management action plan in motion by decision, rather than by necessity.”
Enhanced Media Monitoring
Xenophon’s 2020 Storm Tracker is an enhanced monitoring service that culls the latest data from a variety of sources to give clients comprehensive weather information on a timely basis. The Xenophon crisis response team provides human analysis to track live storms with a keen eye on the specific needs of particular businesses, including those whose operations can stretch across continents and through a variety of geographic regions. The monitoring service allows clients to have constant understanding of a storm’s forecasted path and intensity, and how to respond should the storm impact their communities, staff, and customers. Storm Tracker helps Xenophon’s crisis communication experts to manage internal and external public communications activities that may be necessary for a coming storm.
Crisis Planning
The weather information is just one small part of the overall crisis plan process which typically starts well before hurricane season begins. For current clients, the Xenophon team provides a customized level of communications counsel to develop highly targeted crisis communication and business plans.
Typically, the need for a Storm Tracker is identified as part of a crisis communication audit, wherein an organization is evaluated for critical risks that could affect the bottom line. The results of an audit lead directly to a written crisis communications plan that anticipates major issues posed by storms and other manmade or natural disasters.
Citing risks in advance allows clients to take key steps that can be critical when a crisis does break, such as accessing hurricane business interruption insurance, developing evacuation and safety protocols for employees and customers, managing operations when cell phone towers and internet is not working, assessing long-term effects of a storm, and understanding how to communicate with consumers about reopening. The process is not over after the plan is written.
Xenophon also provides staff crisis drills and training as part of the process. This help avoid PR crises before they ever occur by ensuring each part of an organization is aware of the plan and knows how to do their job when a problem arises.
“Considering these tumultuous times with the coronavirus pandemic and civil unrest throughout the nation, this type of crisis planning is particularly valuable,” said Fuscus. “Clients tend to rely on the Storm Tracker to help keep focus on a looming issue that can easily catch them unaware when other more pressing matters steal attention.”
The 2020 Hurricane Season
The 2020 hurricane season is expected to experience an above-average number of storms, with between 13 and 19 named storms in 2020, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s (NOAA) Climate Prediction Center, a division of the National Weather Service.
Of the named storms, between six and 10 could become hurricanes with winds of 74 mph or higher. It is also predicted that there will be three to six major hurricanes that are Category 3, 4 or 5 with winds of 111 mph or stronger.
For current clients, Xenophon is already tracking the third storm of the 2020 season – Tropical Storm Cristobal. The storm formed on Tuesday and is expected to make landfall in Texas, Louisiana or the Florida Panhandle over the next few days – possibly as a hurricane. The Storm Tracker is providing clients time to plan according for any potential risks related to Cristobal.
Crisis Communication Strategies
Xenophon began applying storm tracking and monitoring services over the past two decades based on key lessons learned working for clients, including The Salvation Army, The Rail Passengers Association, and Air Transport Association of America (now known as Airlines for America).
For The Salvation Army, Xenophon began assisting the organization’s National Headquarters’ with its natural disaster preparedness and response efforts in 2004 when Florida was struck by four major hurricanes. Xenophon provided crisis communications support from its Washington, D.C. office, and had boots on the ground in affected Florida cities.
Since 2004, Xenophon has provided Storm Tracker service for clients for nearly 20 hurricanes, including Katrina in 2005, Irene in 2011, Sandy in 2012, and both Irma and Harvey in 2017.
Over the past 20 years, Xenophon’s crisis communications work has been employed in some of the largest and most difficult crises for clients. Crises include the coronavirus and SARS pandemics, the U.S. airline industry following 9/11, mercury poisoning issues for the U.S. Centers for Disease Control, and major natural disasters including earthquakes and tornadoes.
About Xenophon Strategies
Xenophon Strategies is one of the top PR agencies in Washington, DC, and represents clients from the U.S., Canada, Asia, Central Asia and Europe. Xenophon is a member of the Public Relations Global Network and has 50 sister firms around the globe. More information can be found at www.xenophonstrategies.com.