On Tuesday, October 9th, 2012, the Canadian Red Cross released a survey that they conducted with Ipsos Reid to gauge how we feel about social media and they work that is done by them, social media and being prepared.

The results, while not earth shattering to anyone who has been keeping tabs on disaster response, emergency management and education / awareness, have some very interesting results.

There is no doubt that in an emergency, people will turn to social media to talk about, learn about and share their experiences when disaster or emergencies strike.  That is the new normal when it comes to information, due in part to the immediacy and availability of information in real-time and the research supports this:

“A majority (54%) of Canadians would use social media channels  such as Facebook or Twitter to let their friends and family know that they are safe in the event of an emergency”

Here is one of…

September 11, 2001.

Do you remember where you were?  Do you remember what you were doing?  Did you find yourself glued to a television?  Were you angry?  Were you sad?  Can you describe the shock you felt?

11 years later… do you still think back to the horror that unfolded during the morning of that clear and sunny day?

I will never forget, I will always remember.  I will forever pay tribute and honour to the first responders that ran in while others were running out.

I will never forget, I will always remember the volunteers who travelled from near and far to help in the search and rescue efforts.

I will never forget, I will always remember the faces, the sorrow, the tears and the heartbreak of those who lost loved ones.

I will never forget, I will always support, “If you see it, say it.” and report anything…

I was looking at the Facebook the other day and saw a story that caught my eye.  It was about an abduction of a child from my hometown, so naturally I was interested in what was happening and if I knew anyone involved.

The report was accompanied by the picture of the missing child with a plea for help to locate her.  The post had been shared a few times and the expected concern was shown in the comments.

I was tempted to share the post myself but stopped short.  I reminded myself that information like this absolutely NEEDS to be fact checked before you share it.  So, I did just that. I called the local police and they hadn’t heard anything about it.

Today, sure enough, I saw a post online about the story.  The headline said it all…

“St. Thomas Police: Social Media Reports Of A Child…