One person is dead. Eleven workers remain unaccounted for. An explosion has just occurred at U.S. Steel’s Clairton Plant, and the company’s first public statement has arrived.
Here’s what they said: ‘Around 11 a.m. ET on Monday, August 11, an incident occurred at U.S. Steel’s Clairton Plant, specifically at coke oven batteries 13 and 14. Emergency teams were immediately dispatched to the scene.’ And from the CEO: ‘Our top priority is the safety and wellbeing of our employees and the environment.’
Every single word of that statement was wrong.
‘An incident occurred.’ An explosion happened. Own the word. When you use passive language to describe a catastrophic event, you signal that you’re trying to put distance between your organization and what happened. People notice.
‘Emergency teams were immediately dispatched.’ Our teams arrived within minutes. Who dispatched them? From where? Active voice puts a human being in charge. Passive voice puts nobody in charge.
‘Our top priority is the safety and wellbeing of our employees.’ When people are dead and missing, saying safety is your priority rings hollow. Don’t declare priorities. Show them.
Here’s what a statement with real humanity sounds like: ‘At approximately 11 this morning, an explosion occurred at our Clairton Plant. One of our people has died. Eleven remain unaccounted for. Our teams were on site within minutes. If you have a family member who works at Clairton, call this number.’ That’s not a legal document. That’s a human being talking.
The first 24 hours of crisis response determines public perception for the next 24 months. Corporate speak doesn’t protect you. It distances you from the people who need to trust you most.