Several times we have written about the impact of social media on emergency management, both in our blog and in our newsletters.
Today was a perfect example. A high speed chase following an armed robbery ended in the parking lot of my niece's high school in Michigan. The driver fled into the school which was immediately placed into a lockdown.
My niece was in the computer lab at the time and started to post on Facebook, giving a play by play of what she was experiencing. Friends, both in the school and outside the school posted their comments. Parents were posting their worries. And all of this was in real time while the event was occurring.
Two and a half hours after the lockdown was implemented my niece was posting how boring it was getting... then the lockdown was lifted.
Facebook, twitter and other social media are transforming emergency management, both how information is communicated to the public, but also how the public (in this case my niece and her friends) respond to the incident.
It was an interesting read. Times are changing.
Today was a perfect example. A high speed chase following an armed robbery ended in the parking lot of my niece's high school in Michigan. The driver fled into the school which was immediately placed into a lockdown.
My niece was in the computer lab at the time and started to post on Facebook, giving a play by play of what she was experiencing. Friends, both in the school and outside the school posted their comments. Parents were posting their worries. And all of this was in real time while the event was occurring.
Two and a half hours after the lockdown was implemented my niece was posting how boring it was getting... then the lockdown was lifted.
Facebook, twitter and other social media are transforming emergency management, both how information is communicated to the public, but also how the public (in this case my niece and her friends) respond to the incident.
It was an interesting read. Times are changing.
