OEM has started using hashtags in Twitter

Starting today, the OEM Twitter run by Jennifer Bailey will start to use the #OEMAlerts hashtag for any tweet that is part of an actual alert or notification. This does not affect anyone who is already following us through Twitter - you will still receive our tweets as normal. What this will do is make it easier for people who are not already following us to be able to search for our tweets in search engines, and through the hashtags website.

To search hashtags, use the hashtag's website (or search in Twitter): http://hashtags.org/

You can view the #OEMAlerts stats at http://wthashtag.com/Oemalerts

For more about hashtags and how they work, check out the following pages:

http://www.searchenginejournal.com/twitter-hashtags/9419/

http://factoryjoe.com/blog/2007/10/22/twitter-hashtags-for-emergency-coordination-and-disaster-relief/

Preparedness Gift Ideas from FEMA

SEATTLE, Wash. -- Each and every year millions of American lives are disrupted by natural disasters ranging from earthquakes and tsunamis to floods and wildfire. But all disasters—large or small—share a common attribute: they focus attention on the importance of disaster preparedness and the critical need to take action before disaster strikes. The trick is to convert good intentions into good deeds, and according to Acting FEMA Regional Administrator Dennis Hunsinger, there's no time like the holidays.

"Disaster-ready gifts can save lives, and are a wonderful way of welcoming in 2010," said Hunsinger. "Helping to better prepare neighbors, friends and loved ones for emergencies is a great way to say 'I care.'"

Emergency and preparedness items that might make great gifts this Holiday Season include:

NOAA Weather Radios and extra batteries.
Enrollment in a CPR or first-aid class.
Smoke detectors.
Appropriate fire extinguishers (kitchen, garage, car).
Disaster kits for homes, offices and autos (first aid kits, food, water and prescription medications for 72 hours, extra clothing, blankets, flashlights).
Foldable ladders for second-story escape in a fire.
Car kits (emergency flares, shovels, ice scrapers, flashlights and fluorescent distress flags).
Pet Disaster Kits (food, water, leashes, dishes and carrying case or crate).
A camp stove with extra fuel.
The gift of a gardener to cut back combustible vegetation from wildfire-vulnerable homes.
National Flood Insurance.

A wealth of information and preparedness tips is available from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security's READY.GOV site at: www.ready.gov and from FEMA at: www.fema.gov.

Stay informed of FEMA's activities online: videos and podcasts available at www.fema.gov/medialibrary and www.youtube.com/fema; follow us on Twitter www.twitter.com/femainfocus twitter.com/femaregion10 and on FaceBook at www.facebook.com/fema.

FEMA's mission is to support our citizens and first responders to ensure that as a nation we work together to build, sustain, and improve our capability to prepare for, protect against, respond to, recover from, and mitigate all hazards.

Oregon Emergency Management encourages you to follow us on www.twitter.com/baileyjn

Ready now, Steady later

Preparing for a disaster is one of those projects it's easy to put off. Don't wait; do it now. Rarely do you get a warning that a disaster is on its way in time to do much about it. At worst, planning ahead can make the difference between surviving or not. At the least, an emergency kit and a clear plan will help your family and neighbors be more comfortable while you wait it out.

Oregon is vulnerable to vaious types of natural hazards, from severe winter storms to earthquakes and floods. We also need to be prepared for thereats from aiforne chemicals, fires, tainted water or acts of aggression.

Many regional and national organizations have web sites, blogs and other communications dedicated to disaster preparedness. Oregon Emergency Management suggests you visit www.ready.gov for information about "Sheltering in Place," prepareing a 72 hour kit and making a disaster plan. There are diagrams and lists you can review and print out to help. The Red Cross also has a very useful site, www.oregonredcross.org. Check your local emergency management agencies for twitters and blogs like this one.

OEM's twitter is www.twitter.com/baileyjn. This is where we will post emergency information during disasters and education information when things are calmer.

The Speed of Social Media

Today a utility worker damaged power lines and knocked out power to a chunk of Clark County - 4800 people were without power.

http://www.koinlocal6.com/content/news/breakingnews/story/Power-outage-in-Clark-County/ib_sSireyE-FxNUXnziOZg.cspx?rss=1102

What is interesting is not the power service loss - the power company will quickly restore it and everyone will soon forget - but that social media has quickly reported this phenomenon. Over three hours ago KOIN news posted on their twitter and website that power was out, and OEM's own twitter re-tweeted it. But that same news won't be reported on tv news, radio or newspaper until this evening - long after the event has happened.

There have been numerous stories about regular Internet users being able to post information during disasters at times when officials do not have the resources to collect the information fast enough. Now we see traditional media quickly reporting news via Twitter!

Ironically, as I'm writing this article I find out through CNN that there may have been a tornado in Minneapolis. NOAA reported a possible tornado, but officials are still have not positively identified the storm as a tornado - merely a severe thunderstorm.

Right now it is 3:15 PM. A quick search on twitter for the hashtag #tornadompls found the following: http://twitpic.com/ei4nb This was photographed by a cell phone from a car and uploaded to twitpics 2 hours ago!

Social Media used by all

http://www.fireengineering.com/news/wire_story_display.html?dcmp=rss§ion=WIREN&category=HOME&id=178804&publicationId=25

FEMA wants public involved in disaster preparedness
washingtonpost.com (June 4, 2009)

"As we prepare for disasters, we have to look at the public as a resource, not as a liability," Fugate said during a conference call with homeland security bloggers on Tuesday -- one of the first times a DHS official has hosted a forum exclusively for online journalists.

"With all the other stuff we do at FEMA, that's one area that you'll probably hear and see me talk about more consistently than probably any other subject," he said, without providing any specific details for how he planned to recruit average Americans for the task.

Fugate touted the agency's YouTube and Twitter efforts and DisasterHelp.gov as examples of the agency's efforts to spread the word in new ways. During a visit to FEMA headquarters late last week, President Obama urged residents of hurricane-prone areas to plan ahead for this year's tropical weather, suggesting that preparedness is a responsibility of citizenship.

Go to the link for entire article.