Kate StarbirdJul 2, 2023
In ~2014, my colleague & I argued that social media (esp. Twitter) had become part of the critical infrastructure of disaster response. People were turning to Twitter during crises to share information about impacts and resources. Disaster responders were using the data shared there for situational awareness, and were communicating in real-time with their constituents. Today’s events underscore just how dangerous it is for society to come to rely on private platforms as critical infrastructure.
Show threadChookMother 🇦🇺🦘Jul 3, 2023

@katestarbird Indeed. During a bushfire here in Australia I spent a couple of hours connecting people offering horse floats with people desperate to evacuate their horses. I didn't know any of these people but I could track events in real time which enabled me to respond promptly.

Ditto in catastrophic floods in eastern Australia someone was able to tweet that their grandmother was floating on a mattress close to the ceiling - this is her location please get her out."

Show threadKate Starbird
@anne_twain Some of my colleagues at the University of Colorado wrote papers about the coordination (and volunteerism) that takes place, often relying up social media, to move animals and especially horses during wildfires. The lead author in that was an Aussie, though the paper was about CO wildfires I believe. But the activity seems to be universal. Pets need to be evacuated, people want to help, and where available, social media will be used as part of that.
Jul 3, 2023 at 2:34pmWeb