Vehicles sit submerged as a search and rescue worker looks through debris for any survivors or ... More remains of people swept up in the flash flooding on July 6, 2025 in Hunt, Texas. Heavy rainfall caused flooding along the Guadalupe River in central Texas with multiple fatalities reported. (Photo by Jim Vondruska/Getty Images) Getty Images In the aftermath of a deadly natural disaster,, there are often crisis management lessons to learned, underscored, and repeated. The headline-making floods earlier this month in Texas are no exception. The initial lessons include examples and reports about communication failures, delayed responses, reduced staffing levels, and management matters. These and other issues should serve as a reminder for business leaders about the challenges organizations can face when a weather-related disaster strikes. Some government agencies may not be up to the challenges of dealing with crisis situations. For example, alerting people to the sudden threats that are posed by rising waters could be difficult for local authorities. “These challenges seem to be heightened in rural areas where local governments have limited budgets and staffing. [Their] ability to reach the public can be adversely affected by lack of communications infrastructure, including cell phone signals, as well as radio and TV reception blind spots,” Clifford Oliver, a former FEMA assistant administrator and now the principal at Nanticoke Global Strategies, told me in an email interview. Effective crisis management plans need to be more than generic checklists or templates, and should be flexible enough to meet rapidly changing conditions and circumstances. ‘The Texas floods are a reminder [that] your plan should live and breathe. Update it regularly, tailor it to your region’s risks, and ensure every key player knows their role long before disaster strikes,” he advised. It is important to have working relationships with individuals and organizations including emergency planners, local governments, and vendors in order to achieve “faster response times and quicker recovery outcomes. Crisis management requires organizations to develop proactive networks and systems which will function effectively during disasters,” Daniel Kilburn, a disaster management strategist, and founder of Emergency Action Planning, told me in an email message. MORE FOR YOU Test Plans And Communications Don’t assume that your crisis management and crisis communication plans will always work when needed. “Know and test your tools. Communication systems fail when they’re not tested under stress. Businesses must regularly and randomly test internal alerts, call trees, and customer notification systems. You don’t want to discover a breakdown in the middle of a crisis, it will cost lives,” Lauren Stralso, director of public relations at LevLane Advertising, told me via email. Have multiple methods of communicating with people during a crisis. “Do not rely on a single method (text, email, app alerts). Systems can fail, and not all employees or customers will be reachable on one platform. Create a layered alert system (phone call trees, SMS, social media, in-person notifications) to maximize coverage,” Lea Greene, the owner of Top Ten Communication, told me in an email interview. “Regularly test all communication channels to ensure reliability in a real crisis,” she advised. Implement and review on a regular basis is policies and protocols that help guarantee everyone knows who is responsible for doing what in a crisis. “Make sure all staff understands who is responsible for alerts and what steps to take in the most likely emergencies. Document and practice protocols regularly—do not assume ‘someone will handle it.’ Prepare clear, concise message templates for different types of emergencies to prevent confusion and delays,” Greene recommended. Don’t expect that everyone will be able to receive the alerts, information, and warnings that are sent about a pending or evolving crisis.“Recognize that some people may miss digital alerts due to device rules, poor coverage, or staff/customers being offline. Implement redundant, low-tech solutions (physical signage, loudspeakers, designated staff messengers),” she concluded. What you don’t say is just as important as what you do. “Texas officials had the ability to send mass alerts and didn’t. That silence cost lives. In the aftermath, they failed to offer clear updates or take meaningful accountability, leaving communities in the dark when they needed answers most,” Alexa Rome, director of public relations and communications at Ommus Law recalled in an email message. The city manager in Kerrville, Texas “admitted on camera that he had turned off emergency alerts, undermining any coordinated response the city may have had. The public message is critical, but if your internal team doesn’t know what’s happening or how to respond, your external message will fall apart,” she concluded. Coordination Is Key One of the most vital lessons from the recent Texas floods “is the critical importance of clear, coordinated, and timely communication between agencies, media, and the public. When lives are at stake, what you say, how you say it, and where that message appears can be the difference between safety and tragedy,” Alexandria Hurley, a crisis communication expert, told me via email. ‘In this case, despite the National Weather Service issuing flash flood warnings hours before the most severe flooding began, there appears to have been a breakdown in how that information was communicated to both emergency managers and the public. The absence of a designated warning coordination meteorologist—a key liaison between meteorologists and emergency operations—exposed a gap that likely slowed decision-making and public notification,” she pointed out. For business leaders, Hurley said the lesson is this: your crisis plan is only as strong as your communication flow. “Having accurate information is not enough; there must be a system to deliver that message consistently, repeatedly, and across all channels—especially when digital infrastructure (like cell service) is compromised. Pre-planned escalation protocols, spokesperson training, and redundancies in communication systems are not optional—they are essential,” she concluded. Don’t Let Anything Fall Through the Cracks In small and rural communities, one person may have multiple crisis-related responsibilities, which means that established chains of commands could be broken, and vital tasks could be neglected. “Unless an alternate person has been granted the authority to step-in and act and they are aware of the need to act, the broken chain can result in delays in decision making and lifesaving actions,” Oliver, the former FEMA assistant administrator, warned. Whether there are potential floods, wildfires, hurricanes or snow storms, being prepared for weather-related events in your part of the country is critical in today’s climate-change environment. Organizations that are aware of the crisis management-related shortfalls and weaknesses in their area should take steps now to ensure that those weaknesses are addressed and will not make a bad situation worse when a crisis strikes. Texas lawmakers are scheduled today to begin investigating what went wrong in preparing for and responding to the deadly floods in their state. Based on the findings, don’t be surprised if there are more lessons to be learned from the tragedy. Editorial StandardsReprints & Permissions