How to Use Twitter and Facebook for Emergency Travel Information
From The New York Times:
You don’t have to like Twitter or Facebook, or even post to them, but when an emergency strikes, the networking sites can be essential travel tools.
As Hurricane Maria neared the Caribbean this week, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) used Twitter to disseminate shelter information. And when a powerful earthquake rocked Mexico on Tuesday, the State Department tweeted an emergency message about how to call the United States embassy. After the explosion last week at the Parsons Green subway station in London, the mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, posted a statement on Facebook, confirming that the “bucket bomb” was being treated as terrorism.
Sometimes organizations rely on social media to get out messages when their own websites are slow, as the National Hurricane Center’s was when it experienced overwhelming traffic during Hurricane Irma. Other times, ways to help organically bubble up on social media. In 2015, when Islamic State militants attacked Paris, people used the hashtag #PorteOuverte (“open door”) to offer each other safe shelter.
The key to using Twitter and Facebook in travel emergencies is choosing the right people, groups and companies to follow. Misinformation is common. So who to trust?
Below, a beginner’s guide to finding the most helpful accounts. A word of caution: Sometimes a social media account looks official even though it has nothing to do with the actual organization or individual you’re seeking. On Twitter, one way to know you’ve got the right account is to look for a blue verified badge, which indicates the account is authentic (although getting verified can take quite a while, so not every legitimate account has them). Facebook has gray verification badges. Another way to find what you’re looking for is to search for the desired person or organization online, like the Paris Tourist Office, and then connect to that organization’s social media account (@ParisJeTaime on Twitter; @p.infos on Facebook) from their official website.
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