Social Media and Emergency Disaster Situations
Most people understand what social media like Facebook and Twitter are. These are just the newest and most popular types of social media, a phenomenon that actually got its start with MySpace. Folks use social networking sites to stay in touch, to meet up with new people, and even to affect social change. In an emergency, these kinds of social media are ways for folks to contact one another, and for emergency management to run smoother than ever seen before.
If you use Twitter or Facebook, just as two examples, you have potentially realized that moments after there is a national news story, especially a disaster of any sort, there are mentions of this that come rapid-fire on the feed. The recent Eastern US quake, for instance, had folks on Twitter joking about it, with some sending messages as it was happening.
The terrifying tsunami that devastated Japan was consistently discussed in the stream for weeks after, but during those first few days people were searching for missing family and friends, sending out alerts for help in finding them, and making pleas for donations to disaster aid groups. Some groups in Japan sent messages on Twitter updating sometimes every few minutes during the catastrophe and after so long as they could, until the power went out or the danger for them had passed.
The power to connect this way thru Toughbooks laptops and other mobile solutions not only helped many of us, but brought many people comfort that they weren't alone. But when a tragedy strikes, social networking can go past being social, and can function as a powerful tool to guard public safety.
Law enforcement, fire officials and first responders of all types would do well to think about having Twitter feeds and Facebook pages, at a minimum, that can be updated from mobile rugged systems during emergencies. They should also consider checking local feeds during and following emergencies for amazingly good info that can be useful.
If you use Twitter or Facebook, just as two examples, you have potentially realized that moments after there is a national news story, especially a disaster of any sort, there are mentions of this that come rapid-fire on the feed. The recent Eastern US quake, for instance, had folks on Twitter joking about it, with some sending messages as it was happening.
The terrifying tsunami that devastated Japan was consistently discussed in the stream for weeks after, but during those first few days people were searching for missing family and friends, sending out alerts for help in finding them, and making pleas for donations to disaster aid groups. Some groups in Japan sent messages on Twitter updating sometimes every few minutes during the catastrophe and after so long as they could, until the power went out or the danger for them had passed.
The power to connect this way thru Toughbooks laptops and other mobile solutions not only helped many of us, but brought many people comfort that they weren't alone. But when a tragedy strikes, social networking can go past being social, and can function as a powerful tool to guard public safety.
Law enforcement, fire officials and first responders of all types would do well to think about having Twitter feeds and Facebook pages, at a minimum, that can be updated from mobile rugged systems during emergencies. They should also consider checking local feeds during and following emergencies for amazingly good info that can be useful.
About the Author:
Rugged laptops that remain reliable regardless of what the environment might be like can help during small and large emergencies. For a Tuff Book that won't let you down, check out Rugged Depot at ruggeddepot.com today.
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