Social media and natural disasters

The report on the role of information and social networks in emergencies and conflicts shows that vast progress has been made in communicating information on disasters to the masses.

When the tsunami occurred in Indonesia in 2004, there was no way to spread the information that an earthquake had just happened and now a massive wave was headed in everyone’s direction. There was no alert system available for those living around the Indian Ocean, unlike one that already existed for the Pacific Ocean. The people in control of developing emergency alert systems decided that there needed to be a more people-centered approach when it cam to disaster warnings. These warnings needed to be extended down to the local level so that everyone in danger would know of what was about to happen.

The idea that mass information on disasters could be sent using e-mail, social networks and cell phones. While this form of communication could apply to most of the developed world, only 39 percent of people in developing countries have access to cell phones. And many of the people in developing countries do not have access to a laptop, so therefore they will be using mobile phones to access the Internet and receive e-mail and SMS updates.

Therefore, it is not reasonable enough right now to say that we have the disaster alert warnings exactly right. For the people who do not have access to means to get the information, they will be left out in the dark when they shouldn’t be. Communication technologies will be the lifeline for communities in crisis, and the way they get their information is extremely important. Like any form of mass communication, the issue of the validation of the information always come into question. But even if the people in the tsunami in 2004 had known that there was a possible threat of a tsunami, everything would have changed. Even if that information proved to be incorrect, just the fact that they were on the lookout for a disaster would mean that disaster preparedness was having an effect.

While the deployment of the Ushahidi platform to cover political unrest, ethnic violence and other sorts of disasters has had a significant effect on how humans present the information gathered, none of this matters if the means is not available for people. That is why extending new communication technologies to those in developing countries is one of the main goals for those developing disaster preparedness.