|
|
How cell phones may have helped Southern Asia
It seems almost indecent to be blogging today, when tens of thousands have been hit by the tsunamis that devastated Southern Asia - but I'm trying to pick up anything I find related to cell phones and how they may have helped - or could have helped more. So far, I've run across the following articles: This post will be updated throughout the day. -- The Malaysia Star writes about an SMS message warning road users not to use the Penang Bridge. -- The Calcutta Telegraph describes an SMS sent to officials in the disaster management division of the home ministry annoncing a quake in distant Indonesia - but giving no clue to it's magnitude. -- The China Post reports that in Phuket, communications with other people in the region were difficult, with mobile phones only accepting incoming calls and not able to call outwards -- In a first hand account from Alison Gray, editor of The Scotsman Magazine vacationing in Sri Lanka, describes how she was able to get word to her parents that she was safe by SMS. "My parents found the Foreign Office hotline either jammed or not recognised: text messaging has been the only reliable communication." -- Channel News Asia reports that mobile phone calls to Thailand surged by 100 per cent when news of the disaster broke, as anxious family members and friends of Singaporeans holidaying in the affected countries were eager to know if their loved ones were safe. -- According to the BBC, the Thai government has asked local people not to use their mobile phones in order to reduce congestion. According to The Washington Post, "the real tragedy, many experts acknowledged yesterday, is that thousands of lives in countries such as Sri Lanka, India and Thailand could have been saved if an early warning system similar to one that exists for the Pacific Ocean had been in place. U.S. officials said that they wanted to warn the countries but that there was no mechanism to do so. Public warnings are issued via coastal sirens, television and radio bulletins and even SMS messages in some countries, reports the Khaleejtimes Links and articles to related SMS emergency warning systems around the world. Many of these are related to terrorism, but the principal of implementing an emergency SMS service is the same. HOW YOU CAN HELPSmart Mobs links to a blog called The South-East Asia Earthquake and Tsunami set up by a group of volunteers to coordinate information about resources, aid, donations and volunteer efforts in response to the devastating Southeast Asian earthquake and tsunami. cf related Tsunami/cell phone stories posted in Textually.org. |
|
BULK SMS GATEWAY