As for communication perhaps they could direct people on the ground with airplane banners.
In WWII we used leaflets to get out information. They were dropped from balloons. It is time to get creative to find ways to direct these people to help. 
"despite the fact that city officials had been telling people for days to gather there"
Which people????
MAYOR--->GOVERNOR--->FEMA
If the first two elements of the chain are not transmitting the info, then how is FEMA to know what is going on.
That is why God invented the MSM. Just turn on the TV, the radio, and surf the net. You would notice that there seemed to be a lot of folks in and around the dome.
As for communication perhaps they could direct people on the ground with airplane banners.
In WWII we used leaflets to get out information. They were dropped from balloons. It is time to get creative to find ways to direct these people to help.