Social Media for Fire and EMS

The following comes to us via Sam at http://www.999socialmedia.com , a very progressive user of Social Media for Fire and EMS in the UK.

The article showcases the tactical use of Social Media in both response and prevention.
- The SM4FIRE.com Admin. Team
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999 Social Media: All a-Twitter about social media

When a plane landed on the River Hudson in New York City, it was someone on a ferry picking up the passengers who broke the story using Twitter.

When a fire raged across Devil’s Peak in Cape Town, South Africa, Twitter again beat traditional news outlets.

When an earthquake struck in Ontario, Canada, residents used Twitter to let family and friends know they were well.

And it happens in the UK too. When a crane collapsed in Liverpool last year, leaving the driver trapped in the rubble, news was broken on Twitter within minutes of fire crews arriving at the scene. A resident in a neighbouring building witnessed the drama and informed the world what had happened, following it up minutes later with photos. Phone calls from the local media to Merseyside Fire and Rescue quickly followed.

It’s a sharp introduction to the effectiveness of Twitter – and how it’s changing the world of communications, one Tweet at a time.

Saving lives

But as well as thinking about using Twitter during emergencies, there are also possibilities open to try and prevent those emergencies happening in the first place.

Norfolk County Council’s Fire and Rescue Service in England blazed the trail with the #testittuesday campaign. Every Tuesday, they send a fire safety message to their followers reminding them to test their smoke alarms.

Creator Elle Flatt, Web & Communications Co-ordinator at Norfolk Fire, had no idea how her campaign would grow.

She said: “When I came up with the idea of doing the #hashtag, I got in touch with a few other fire services to see if they would support it and it grew from there.

“It was really nervewracking to do something like that and I was hoping it would take off but I thought even if it only works for two weeks, how many people might see it?

“The results have been great, it has just grown and grown and feedback is really positive. We have had messages back saying ‘we even tested our alarms when we were on holiday’ and then someone else has tested their alarm, so it sparks people’s attention.

“We have got at least two people this week who have tweeted a #testittuesday message without any prompting, so it’s becoming more recognized which is great.”