A woman was able to track down her missing sister-in-law today thanks to the help of a fellow Twitter user.
Earlier we posted some of the Chile earthquake pictures that Chileans have been sharing on Twitter of the devastation caused by this morning’s magnitude-8.8 earthquake. Many of our readers were moved, as we were, to see some of the destruction first-hand. But one reader, Sheryl Breuker, shared a personal story with us in the comments about the true power of social media in crisis situations.
She wrote:
“…my sister-in-law was in Santiago and we couldn’t find her. No text, no phones, nothing. We were able to make contact with locals using twitter search to follow hashtags and several people contacted us asking for details. One of the locals looked for, and FOUND my brothers wife, 2 hours after first contact. I am so thankful for social media, grateful to the power of networking and beyond ecstatic my sister-in-law was safe and her home intact.”
Twitter User Offers Help
Because power and phone lines are down in many areas near Santiago, Breuker’s attempts to call, text, and e-mail her sister-in-law were in vain.
She then turned to Twitter and used hashtags to make a connection with any locals near Santiago where her sister-in-law Maria lives. Many responded by retweeting the missing person link, created with Google’s Chile Earthquake Person Finder.
Before long, she was contacted by a stranger who lived in the area, asking how he could help. Through their Twitter correspondence, Breuker was able to pass on Maria’s address to the man, who could physically go there to check on her sister-in-law.
Within two hours of their first contact, Breuker received a Direct Message on Twitter from the man: “found her! she is OK…. she told me to tell Twinkie to stay cool, she is fine!”
The story really illustrates the power of social networks in a crisis situation. They provide communication channels that spread out in all directions, bypassing the direct lines like phone and e-mail that in this situation, simply didn’t work.
The story is detailed further in Breuker’s blog post.
Have you heard other stories of social media connecting missing loved ones in Chile, Haiti, or elsewhere? Share them in the comments below.
Tags: chile, chile earthquake, social media, social networks, twitter
