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Communicating the potential impact of local hazards in multilingual contexts reduces risks. Drawing the readers' attention to the terminology shaping the global disaster risk reduction agenda and underpinning many activities in the international humanitarian sector, the article introduces multiple facets of multilingual risk communication about hazards. Subdivided into three sections, the article presents factors that influence current studies and may advance future research into translating information concerning hazards and the risks they pose, as part of disaster reduction practices. The first section considers relationships between key terms influencing disaster risk reduction practices, as these terms create terminological barriers to enabling a broader understanding of local hazards among at-risk multilingual communities. The second section reflects on risk communication practices around education on hazards in relation to linguistic preparedness. The third section illustrates how key grey literature deems multilingual risk communication important while it struggles to reconcile the need to exploit existing technologies to enhance resources for multilingual communication, with the absolute need for trust in the information. The conclusions map the field and the Special Issue, supported by a References list intended to draw the readers' attention to key perspectives that may stimulate and encourage future research focused on translating hazards. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study examines policies adopted by the government of Qatar for the communication of essential information during crises, especially the COVID-19 pandemic, to residents who do not speak Arabic – the official language of Qatar. A set of relevant official documents are examined for their discussion and utilisation of 'translation' and related activities and policies, including Qatar's policies on the use of Arabic as an official language and its efforts to improve multilingual communication in published laws, regulations, and policies. Additionally, the utilisation of social media by Qatari authorities to disseminate essential COVID-19 information to non-Arabic-speaking residents is assessed: information from Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook posted by six official bodies is used to assess public engagement and interaction (shares, likes, retweets, replies, and comments) with COVID-19-related posts. The study finds that translation and other methods related to multilingual communication are not unambiguously defined in Qatar's crisis management policies. The Qatari government needs to formulate more effective methods for using translation on social media as an emergency management tool to communicate with non-Arabic speaking residents during the COVID-19 pandemic and other crises. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]