Austin and Travis County should work to fix communication breakdowns with residents, address planning and operational shortfalls, and dedicate more resources to resilience and infrastructure, according to a consultant's review of lessons learned from Winter Storm Mara.

That after-action report, released Oct. 3, dove into city and county emergency planning around the storm from late January into February. It also highlighted how local governments can better ready for weather events that are becoming "more intense, more complex, more extreme, and more demanding" to deal with, according to consultants with Riskonnect Inc.

In response to dozens of their recommendations, Austin leaders said multiple departments will now lay out a citywide corrective action plan by the end of the year alongside other ongoing fixes and updates—especially after similar emergency preparedness proposals weren't fully addressed in the past.

"Back when this all happened in February, I said, 'This has been a persistent challenge over the past several years, and public frustration is absolutely warranted. Over and over again, we see the same failure. Even with reports that clearly state something has to change. So, something will change,'" Mayor Kirk Watson said in his Oct. 3 newsletter. "I’m working with others at the city to make that change. It’s happening. And this after-action report will not be ignored."

The big picture

The new after-action report covers the time before, during and after Winter Storm Mara, and examines the response of departments from the Austin Energy and Austin Water utilities to the city's emergency management and transportation offices.

In total, the report produced 78 main action items across the six "focus areas" of communications; planning and preparation; operational coordination; resource and asset management; technology and infrastructure; and shelter management.

Additionally, AE and AW completed their own individual reports with dozens more targeted proposals for each utility.

Updates on all action items will be shared publicly alongside the results of other city reviews via Austin's Community Resiliency Improvement Status Portal, or CRISP.

The details

In the central after-action report, reviewers pointed to communications—both across Austin and Travis County departments, and between government agencies and the public—as a key factor in emergency response.

The city and county initially shared general information with area residents and successfully relayed some internal and external updates after the worst of the weather passed. However, several processes and systems were also criticized as being lackluster or inefficient at a time when the latest information was needed. Issues included:

• Communications between the city and county's Emergency Operations Center and local elected officials
• Uncoordinated, slow, or overlapping internal and external communication efforts due to outdated protocols and technology, including an inability to shift tactics and offer information in different formats amid power outages
• A lack of overall preparedness leading to breakdowns during and after the storm, including Austin Energy's unclear messaging about power restoration that led to widespread frustrations in February
• Delayed translation services for residents in harder-to-reach communities

The after-action report also credited Austin and Travis County for some advance preparations, including a previous marketing campaign to promote personal readiness, some focus on the mistakes of Winter Storm Uri response two years prior, and getting emergency materials in place before a storm.

Areas identified as needing improvement were:

• Launching and offering information about emergency shelter options, especially for more vulnerable residents, including the homeless and medically at-risk Austinites
• Overall community resilience and transparency about the effects of the storm, and effective training for government employees involved in response
• Providing proper protections for staff who might face dangerous conditions or threats in the community, and planning more sustainable shift plans for around-the-clock responses, including a better volunteer system and a clear chain of command

Reviewers also found that city crews generally worked well in responding to impacts, such as thousands of power outages and tons of debris, especially as issues compounded and escalated during and after the storm. But in line with findings on overall communications practices, overlapping messaging and some undertrained staff also helped complicate that work. The report proposed that governments:

• Standardize and streamline coordination processes, especially between Austin Energy and other departments.
• Improve neighborhood-level preparedness efforts.
• Fully train relevant employees on their emergency responsibilities, and develop procedures for staffing emergency operations and documenting the response.

Government departments were noted as successfully keeping up fleet services and other support for the intensive power restoration efforts, for winterizing their facilities and equipment, and connecting residents with community health workers and emergency supplies through programs such as the expanding resilience hub network.

As previously noted, reviewers also said Austin and Travis County must better outline:

• What duties their employees are able to take on during emergencies
• Scheduling, shift management and compensation in such situations
• Safety for city and county personnel
• How to track equipment and budget for response

On the technology front, reviewers said the former Austin Transportation Department did a good job responding to some downed traffic signals, while 311 services addressed sheltering requests well. Beyond those activities, recommendations included:

• Fixing inaccuracies on public-facing maps such as AE's power outage tracker or the former ATD's traffic signal map
• Prioritizing traffic signals to deploy battery backups or temporary stop signs
• Improving interpretation tools and using new platforms to reach non-English speakers
• Creating a comprehensive mapping tool to report all hazards and other emergency information

Finally, reviewers said relevant departments worked well together in responding to vulnerable populations in need of shelter, especially through the Austin Public Library network and a contract with the Austin-Area Urban League. Reviewers also proposed:

• Improving shelter management planning to offer distinct services, such as cold weather shelters for those experiencing homelessness, general warming or cooling centers, or "mega-shelters," and establishing a more streamlined intake process
• Weighing all projected needs at shelter spaces, from staff training and security to power and services for pets
• Considering shelter expansion options in case capacity is reached

What they're saying

"The past few years have taught us that the time is now to consider all types of emergencies and to not only be prepared for historically probable events. Important lessons learned include tempering expectations of recovery time, building community resilience and the need for more robust contingency planning to mitigate obstacles," reviewers concluded. "As we move forward, it is imperative that we capitalize on the successes while proactively addressing areas for improvement. By adhering to the recommendations outlined in this report, we are poised to elevate the response to the next disaster."

A closer look

A summary of each of the report's nearly 80 recommendations by category may be viewed below.