By Allison G. S. Knox
Contributor, EDM Digest
The wildfires in California grew particularly dangerous and life-threatening this week, prompting extensive emergency management efforts to prevent the blazes from spreading. Mandatory evacuations in Southern California forced families to abandon their homes with only what they could carry. It is a frightening time for them. While extensive emergency efforts are needed to contain and manage the fires, one major component of emergency management appears to be working well: communication among residents.
Social Media Sites Proving Beneficial for Communication of Vital Information
During the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, families were unable to quickly find out whether their loved ones in the vicinity of the attacks were safe. But Facebook and other social media have changed communication during and after major disasters. Social media sites have made it easy for individuals to quickly inform their family and friends that they are safe.
Communication Issues Often Complicate Emergency Management Efforts
Communication issues often complicate emergency management efforts in numerous ways. As Air Force Colonel Alan D. Campen (Ret.) noted in Signal magazine, Hurricane Katrina had numerous communication problems later attributed to failed command and control procedures.
“Fixed communications systems failed with no ready means for their restoration. This was not surprising, given that there exists no incentive for the intensely competitive information systems industry to finance ruggedness, redundancy or rapid restoration,” Campen wrote.
Software Advancements Have Aided Community Resiliency
Technological advances in communication have had a largely positive impact on the community, especially when disasters occur. Facebook, for example, not only allows users to tell others of their safety, but also permits users to inform families and friends of resources the sender might need. These abilities contribute to community resiliency.
Community resiliency (CR) has become an important concept in emergency management discipline in recent years. CR underscores the importance of a community having a solid infrastructure in place to recover quickly following a disaster.
Facebook and other social media could become an intriguing addition to support community resiliency because they allow networks of people to easily connect with one another, regardless of geographic distance. Family and friends can use social media to provide resources and emotional support during a time of crisis and need.
Where emergency management and serious disasters are concerned, social media have changed the way we communicate and how society functions. Social media may also prove to be another effective way for communities to build resilience and recover quickly from disasters.
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