Social media and the emergency services: Part 2 - Emergency management
Jinfo Blog

By Martha Murphy

Abstract

The emergency services are finding new ways of communicating with the public through social media. Martha Murphy shows how Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Flickr, blogs and podcasts have opened up new ways of information dissemination for fire and related groups in Canada.

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As information professionals reading about social media or Web 2.0, we tend to think of library Twitter feeds of the latest titles, blogging about library services or perhaps developing podcasts for training. Social media used by a fire department or emergency management office probably wouldn’t be on our radar as being a source of information. 

Social networks aren’t only tools for citizens to talk to friends around the globe or libraries to network with their users. A fire department can use them to inform the public about a traffic accident on the highway, a burst water main flooding the street, a large loss industrial fire, or an approaching hurricane where evacuation is required.

Emergency management outreach has traditionally been delivered through educational pamphlets and flyers during local presentations or community events, along with other material from various sources. However, citizens may not be interested in receiving the emergency information and consequently will not be swayed to consider behavioural changes such as personal preparedness or prompt evacuation by emergency officials. This element of trust between the general public and government officials can be challenging and lead to a lack of behavioural change. These are some of the common challenges that emergency managers face when communicating with the general public (Crowe, Adam, Journal of Business Continuity Vol.5 No.1, 2010, 409-420).

Social media tools provide fire departments and other emergency groups with a timely response in disseminating public information to citizens, whether its preparedness information on a weekly basis or emergency information when a disaster happens. This includes Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Flickr, blogs, and podcasts, with content such as safety tips, fire prevention week events, emergency preparedness workshop notifications and other announcements. 

It makes sense to use these sites as they are free resources that the public are already familiar with and using. According to Webfuel.ca, half of Canadians are on social networks – that’s 17 million people across Canada. In 2011, 35% of online Canadians visited a social networking site every day; a number that was only 19% a year ago. There is a myth that social media are only for teenagers and young adults. Yes, the 18-34 year olds are by far the heaviest users, but almost two-thirds of the 35-54 year olds, and over 40% of those over age 55 in Canada, are actively using social media, thus expanding the reach across the entire population. Facebook continues to be the dominant social networking site with 750 million users worldwide, and 86% of all Canadians using social media are also on Facebook. In 2009, less than 1% of Canadians were using Twitter and in 2011 that number has grown to 20%; similarly LinkedIn users have doubled to 14% from 6% in 2009. Recent statistics suggest that Google+ has amassed over 10 million users worldwide in just four months since its launch in July 2011.

Emergency organisations would be remiss not to use these social media sites to get notifications out to the general public. Public Safety Canada, a department of the Canadian Federal Government, has a designated site called GetPrepared.ca, and has several resources as well as Twitter updates for citizens to create emergency plans and safety tips during a fire, tornado, earthquake or hurricane. Provincially, sites such as Emergency Management Ontario offer an Emergency Public Warning System, a tool that provides timely and accurate information to Ontario residents, businesses and visitors during an emergency. The system allows Ontarians to receive two types of warning – Red Alerts and Emergency Information Advisories via RSS, Twitter, Facebook, emails and SMS text messages.

In Canada, several fire departments are taking advantage of social media as communication tools to reach their local citizens. Toronto Fire Department is using Twitter and Facebook as a recruiting tool to advertise job opportunities and give additional information on skills testing and the requirements of a firefighter position. Brampton, Burlington, Belleville, Barrie, Calgary, Forest Service of British Columbia, Niagara Falls, Upsala, and Vancouver are using Twitter, Facebook and YouTube for public service announcements, fire prevention week activities and general outreach to their community providing fire safety information. The fire departments are utilising Web 2.0 as another communication tool to reach their local citizens. The Office of the Fire Marshal has compiled a listing of fire service social media sites called Fire Chat.

In the United States, organisations such as Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) have a dedicated fire Twitter account as well as Twitter by region. FEMA also uses RSS, Facebook and YouTube sites, not specifically for emergency alerts but to disseminate news items like disaster recovery centre locations and closings, research reports, statistics and fire safety. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) use RSS, Twitter, Facebook and podcasts for breaking news updates such as reported swine flu cases or lead poisoning as well as press releases and research reports. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) utilises RSS, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Flickr and podcasts to send the fire service news alerts, research and fire safety announcements. In addition they target their messaging via eight blogs on topics such as Fire Prevention Week, Sprinkler Initiative, Wildland Fires, Training and Research Foundation. Many fire departments in the US are also embracing social media, most notably Boston, Charlotte, Phoenix and Los Angeles.

The evolution of social media is moving quickly and, as more people are joining these services, the greater the dissemination of emergency messaging. Today, breaking news and information does not have to wait to be printed or broadcast. Instead it can be instantly transmitted to thousands of followers within seconds. Emergency responders can use Twitter’s geolocation feature, which means the physical location of individuals posting messages can be tracked to assist in rescue efforts. The fire service and other emergency management organisations can now develop interactive relationships between themselves and their audience. In addition, messages can be targeted to specific user groups for maximum effectiveness.

Social media sites were heavily used by emergency responders for recent disasters such as the Japan tsunami, Haiti earthquake and Hurricane Irene. Relief agencies such as St. John’s Ambulance, Salvation Army and Red Cross responded by generating “text to donate” campaigns and organising supplies and volunteers to assist the countries and their citizens. Information professionals can tap into these social media tools used by emergency agencies for breaking news and collecting further information on an incident.

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