The texas floods and the plight of poor crisis comms

On July 4, 2025, flash floods swept across south central Texas, shocking communities with little to no time to react.

More than 10 inches of rain fell fast across several counties, unleashing floods that claimed the lives of over 100 people, including more than two dozen children.

The devastation has left the U.S. stunned, saddened … and pointing fingers. According to the National Weather Service, it issued the first flood warnings around midnight Thursday, July 3. The media and angry social media users have scrutinized the staffing cuts at the National Weather Service, imprecise weather forecasting, a lack of a flash flood warning system, and the effects of climate change in a quest to answer, “Who is to blame?”

Catastrophic events such as the Texas floods underscore the need for an emergency communication plan that guides organizations through a crisis, including engaging with the public and the media.

Since the devastation, there have been several tense press conferences where county and state officials have dodged questions about the timing of alerts, whether they were awake when the flooding began, and why there wasn’t a budget for sensors or alarms.

Where were the communication managers and directors? Were there media briefing exercises and statements drafted to practice (albeit quickly) for these high-pressure moments? Those officials should have been prepared for direct questions. Instead, they became irate at reporters, which made them look like they were hiding something. Evasion is an aphrodisiac to journalists – it will make them push harder to get to the truth.

In times of tragedy, amid grief and despair, people want to piece together the puzzle to understand the incomprehensible. How could something so terrible happen? How can we prevent it in the future? But, more important, who (or what) is to blame?

Providing facts is important, but for events that cause a great loss of life, addressing who – or what – is accountable will become the soundbites and highlight reels shared.