If you haven’t heard, a 5.4 earthquake struck Southern California today just before noon. If you were in the area, you probably tried to call out on your cell or landline and I’m guessing you also experienced congestion. In a disaster, immediate communication with loved ones is a top priority. Today’s quake rendered two-way speech based communication devices (outside of CB radios and Walkie Talkies) a waste of time. The tech savvy instead opted for text based communications including Facebook, Instant Messages (IM), text messages, email, and Twitter. These alternatives proved to be very valuable backup communication tools.
As a native Angelino, I know that after an earthquake hits the drill is to check in and report your status to your loved ones. When everyone I needed to call was within 50 miles of the epicenter, the drill quickly became tricky. Calls to family members from my cell and landline were highly unsuccessful. As I listened to repeated busy signals, it was clear my first response was failing and I required reinforcements.
That’s when I decided to broadcast my status on Facebook and share with others the facts I had collected - "…felt the earth move. That was a long one! 5.8 – Chino Hills." Within minutes over 20 similar updates followed that friends and family were OK. Including “…shaken not stirred despite being on the 38th floor in downtown LA.” Another said “Thank god for twitter. Can't get on cell phones. Wish all family and friends were on twitter.” Even our own resident “Pollyanna” reported that she was “…shaking and baking on the 47th floor.”
Next, my IMs began to pop up on my laptop screen. Before I knew it, I was typing away details with additional friends and family. Then the cell phone that was rendered useless for phone calls began to beep to alert me to new text messages, more good news. I continued to let my fingers do the talking and thankfully, within the hour, it was clear that everyone was fine. Even though it was in text form, the stories, updates, and insights made the whole experience less lonely. I’m glad to have availed myself to so many channels of communication because currently there is no one size fits all solution.
Today was a reminder that emergency communication needs to be quick and reliable. We may love our Blackberries, iPhones, landlines, wireless networks, and social networks but we can’t trust them 100%. When everyone reaches for the same default communication device, the resources of the network are bound to be strained. A variety of distribution channels are needed to broadcast our messages effectively, meaning we need backups to our backups.
If you have not yet explored the alternative quick, and inexpensive communication options that text based technology offers, I suggest that you make them a part of your family, personal, and company emergency preparedness response so that you are not left out of the loop when it matters most. Taking the time to audit and research the best solutions for your family, friends, and coworkers will provide valuable peace of mind in the future. Perhaps it is time to take Russell’s advice and become a follower.
Lastly, please let this be a wake up call and take time to review your disaster preparedness plan. For more information visit: http://earthquake.usgs.gov/learning/preparedness.php
Tuesday, July 29, 2008
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4 comments:
Renee, glad you and loved ones safe. I heard from Heather yesterday. Rolling buildings - 42 floor. Yikes.
Thanks for taking the time to post this great advice. Things are pretty much the same here in SoFla during hurricanes. There is a scramble for communication outlets. But your advice really needs to be taken in account any where in the world. Nature, and man, is unpredictable. If you've ever been forced out of touch with your loved ones during a weather event or other crisis, there really is nothing like it. A little text message is a breath of oxygen. Thanks so much for sharing, Renee.
Renee, great post. As always, I try and translate new ideas into my business and what it means.
For me, this is a wake up call that not only do I need to keep some comfortable shoes in the office in case I need to evacuate, but that I need to update my entire life with new technologies.
Up until today, my professional and personal lives have been kept, for the most part, separate. Why have I shut them off from my professional life? I have some ideas, but that's a whole other blog post.
My iPhone worked great yesterday. While I couldn't call out, I was able to send messages via Facebook and Twitter. Unfortunately, very few of my family and personal contacts are on there. Jayne, Renee and others knew I was fine, but my husband and I could not connect.
What I have come to realize is that I am insane to have limited my social networking primarily to my business contacts. I started out with LinkedIn, which is strictly business. I have some personal friends in there, but they are career people who might benefit my professional contacts.
My Facebook is a place where I am migrating my professional relationships that have become more than just business. But, I still keep it "professional." No Moms Gone Wild there. It's a place where people can get a more holistic view of me.
So, today my emergency checklist includes putting together an evacuation kit for my office, hitting Costco for water & supplies for the emergency closet at home, and inviting my family and close personal friends to enter my social networking life via Facebook and Twitter.
This quake left me more shaken than either the 1973 or 1994 quakes. Not sure why. Despite economic losses and gains in the others, this one had no financial or physical impact ... yet it shook me up. Until yesterday, I was more cavalier about California quakes. Usually they happen once in 25 years; the last one now was only 10 years ago.
For a plan to deal with business continuity after a quake, see the book created by large law firm executive directors: Disaster Preparedness & Recovery Planning ... at www.lawbiz.com (products/books)...
Glad to hear that you're o.k. Seemingly, no one was injured in this quake and only modest physical damage (don't tell that to those who suffered!).
Earthquakes don't bother me, but the failure of the communication made my body shake even more. I hope that the government agencies, cell and telephone companies use this event as a learning lesson.
But, what I find more of a tragedy was the local TV and radio news coverage. And, this is why I got out of TV, folks. For hours, the producers, assignment editors and reporters worked to find any damage or injured citizens. Once reported that there were no problems, they wouldn't stop.
Every day, I am even more disappointed with local and national TV news coverage.
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