Social Networking after the Haiti earthquake

“I'm surprised at how much Facebook.com has burrowed itself into real life along with instant messaging, text messaging and e-mail, ... It's another reason to be on the Net."-Chris Hughes, facebook co-founder

Today I recommend the article, The tale of an Android phone in the earthquake in Haiti. The web site is French but this article is in English.

As is common after a disaster, phone lines (both land and Cell) may be out of service or overloaded.

"In the first few hours that followed the earthquake, mobile service was completely disrupted. It was almost impossible to place a call, due to the combination of the damages on the cellular networks and the spike in phone calls."

But texting often works...

"However, on some networks, SMS service was still available. People stuck under
rubbles started texting to their friends and family (in Haiti and abroad) to
tell them they were still alive and needed help."

The next part really caught my eye,

Those friends and family, not knowing what to do, started posting these SOS messages on their social networks, mainly on Facebook.

Facebook is an amazing tool for linking people together and getting your message to friends. In the article, the Author in Haiti was able to view Facebook on his Android phone, see the SOS messages, and forward the information to rescue workers who were delighted to know where the people were buried. Lives were saved.

Bottom Line

It pays to be connected with a social network. Check out facebook.

Update

I'd never heard of Android before this article. It is a Google smartphone running on Linux. For a comparison of smartphones, check out http://gizmodo.com/5472971/all-the-smartphone-oses-a-beginners-guide/