The following blog post is by a guest blogger, Regan Hipp. 

Disasters are by definition impossible to foresee. An inefficient communication plan may even provoke more damage than an act of God.
When a disaster happens, an emergency response team must place a public information officer and hand them a communication strategy, so that they know how to handle the flow of key information among both the general public and public safety agencies. 
If you're new to the field, here's what you need to know.