How do people prepare for weather emergencies in their areas? Well a new survey by the Red Cross shows that social media users are preparing for emergencies based on what they see online. Meaning, users are likely to take safety or preparedness action based on the information they see in their social networks. In fact, 75% of these users contacted friends and family to see if they were safe. Additionally, over a third of the users said what they saw on social media determined whether or not they gathered supplies or sought out a safe shelter. These users look for hard facts like road closures, damage reports and weather conditions, which they claim is a better indicator of how serious the weather actually is where they live.
The survey also found that a total of 20 percent of Americans said they have gotten some kind of emergency information from a mobile app, including emergency apps, news outlets and privately developed apps. Plus, the amount of people using social media to alert their family/friends of their safety is up to 40 percent, compared to 24 percent reported last year.
"People are using social media to help others during emergencies by spreading useful information," said Linda Carbone, the Red Cross CEO for Florida's West Coast Region.
"We're seeing mobile technology take a bigger role in helping people find critical information, take action and let loved ones know they are safe during a disaster."
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| TheWeather app |
The Red Cross has apps for shelter location finder, first aid tip, hurricane preparedness, and others. The hurricane preparedness app includes a flashlight feature as well as one-touch, "I'm safe" messaging that connects directly to your social media channels.
In addition to the Red Cross app, other apps such as the iDamage, Weather Channel, WX Reporter, The Weather, eWeatherHD, and Weather Snitch are very popular. Twitter and Facebook also provide great resources for people looking to find out local weather information.
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| eWeatherHD app |
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