Facebook, Twitter to the rescue in 'Ondoy' disaster
Agence France-Presse | 09/29/2009 7:01 PM
Printer-friendly version | 
Send to friend | 
Share your views
MANILA - Amid the chaos of the Philippine flood disaster, Twitter, Facebook and mobile phones have proved to be life-savers.
During Saturday's nine-hour deluge that cut power lines and forced people on to their roofs, tech-savvy Filipinos made pleas for help and informed friends of their plight via mobile Internet links and text messaging.
Meanwhile, Twitter and Facebook were a frenzy of activity as people posted notices about places people should avoid, with government critics saying later this online news was faster and more reliable than the official information.
Local television network ABS-CBN used Google Earth maps on its website to mark the addresses of those needing rescue.
In one widely blogged-about incident, popular television actress and model Cristine Reyes was rescued from the roof of her flooded home in the nation's capital, Manila, thanks partly to text messaging.
With landline phone networks in disarray, Reyes' talent manager sent out text messages on his mobile phone to alert the world about her plight.
In what could have been a television plot, actor Richard Gutierrez was alerted and came to her rescue.
One popular local FM radio station also flashed motorists text message alerts on flooded roads and broadcast doctors' tips on how those stranded on roofs could avoid hypothermia.
At the height of the storm, US envoy Kristie Kenney posted a notice on her Facebook page that the flooded consulate would be closed, adding that her government was offering aid.
In the tumultuous days since the disaster, which claimed at least 240 lives in Manila and surrounding areas, new media have provided an important platform for raising funds, organising volunteers and searching for missing people.
Facebook, the hugely successful social networking site, has been used to direct volunteers evacuation camps requiring manpower and supplies, and advising which ones are okay.
Writer Alma Anonas-Carpio, in her Facebook status update, informed those who wanted to help that: "Volunteers at PNRC (Philippine National Red Cross) Rizal Shaw Headquarters are sufficient for now."
"Volunteers may want to head elsewhere," she wrote.
Many have also turned to Facebook to spread updates about the latest death toll, other potential storms and the cancellation of schools.
Pie Valencia, a manager at a Manila company that designs online games, told Agence France-Presse she and her friends had used the Facebook almost exclusively to get updates on the disaster.
"At times you don't need to go to Internet news sites to get updates on what's happening. Everything is on Facebook with live status updates," she said.
GMA television, meanwhile, offered live-streaming of virtual chat among concerned Filipinos around the world who were exchanging information on the easiest ways to send help.
On Facebook and microblogging website Twitter, there have also been tips on how to best salvage a submerged car, how to get the engine to work again, and how to claim car insurance.
Comments