Texts, Twitter and Survive

In the Japanese earthquake, a large part of emergency assistance is organized through social networks on the Internet – from the clothing donation to the emergency.

With the great Tohoku quake collapsed many mobile phone connections, not only along the Sanriku coast, but also in Tokyo. Short texts on the other hand you could send some more, and on social media like Twitter, Facebook, Mixi and Google were some survivors in the tsunami region also have access – if they had batteries. Thus began an unprecedented networking that continues today.

Presumably, some phones have saved lives. In Japan they usually receive a few seconds before strong earthquakes An earthquake warning to mobile phones, the tsunami warnings will be disseminated via the mobile network. After the disaster, many people found their relatives back on the social media and the disaster message boards of the telephone companies.

The latter are mobile subscribers in the event of a disaster for 200-character messages. On these electronic bulletin boards you can record where you are and how one goes. Anyone can see this on the phone or computer.

Already in the first hours after the tsunami, thousands of Japanese asked on Twitter, Mixi and other social media, how they could help. From the Tohoku region were precise detail, what is needed at the beginning especially food, blankets, drinking water and medicine – but also dry ice for preservation of the dead.

Even after doctors and nurses was launched on the social media. Those who received such messages, they multiplied over the web, announced to addresses where you could log on, or where they could deliver in Kyoto, for example, rice bags, which are brought by volunteers into the disaster area.
Online Exchanges for emergency aid

From the shelter came after a few days, the desire for children and school books. A woman in Osaka learned about Twitter, the children in the tsunami region would need satchel. Now she sews replacement. A factory in Chiba prefecture heard of it too. Now it spreads over the Internet, you can send your old school bags, the factory will repair it for free and distribute.

The willingness of the Japanese is not new. What is new is that social media make it possible to bring tens of thousands of offers of help to the needy. Computer geeks have the most far from the earthquake area, raised online exchanges for this emergency.

In the prefecture of Iwate communicate the authorities, because their computer servers and ensure that their sites have disappeared in the floods of the tsunami, on Twitter and Facebook with its citizens. Social media also help to process trauma and collect money.

Quake Book for a good cause

Twitter user “OurManInAbiko”, an English teacher in a suburb of Tokyo, has collected about Twitter experience reports from the disaster area. Resulting in a few days ago a book was born: “2:46-Quake Book”, has also worked on the Yoko Ono. This book should be first quake as an e-book, and later sold and in print. All proceeds go to the Japanese Red Cross.

On blogs and Twitter, the Japanese also learn what to conceal their sources. Last weekend, the Japanese television reported extensively on the anti-nuclear demonstrations in Germany, the demo of Japanese nuclear power opponents in Tokyo but mentioned not one word.

Particularly important are the social media for people with special needs. Alone in the prefecture of Fukushima 607 deaf-mutes were registered, 512 have survived, but most were torn from their environment. Now, a sign language teacher and a computer geek who found Twitter, raised a live translation service for TV news.

Short URL: http://www.usnews9.com/?p=6665

Posted by media on Apr 5 2011. Filed under Featured, Lifestyle, Technology. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.