Twitter named best emergency communication platform

The majority of experts from 90 countries recognized Twitter as the best emergency communication platform when interviewed at the headquarters of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on 2 October, BelTA learned from Vitaly Novitsky, official representative of the Belarusian Emergencies Ministry.

The IAEA headquarters in Vienna is hosting the International Symposium on Communicating Nuclear and Radiological Emergencies to the Public. It is attended by 400 experts from 90 countries. When asked about the most effective emergency communication platforms, 60% of experts named Twitter. Second place went to Facebook (31%), followed by YouTube and other social media. At the same time, above 40% of the respondents believe that the authorities should post information on social media during 15 minutes after the incident. According to one-third of the experts, such information may be posted during 15-30 minutes. The Belarusian Emergencies Ministry noted that it has run its Twitter account for seven years. More than 87,000 people follow it. The account is used to quickly report incidents, answer the followers' questions connected with the work of rescue teams. The ministry also has a Viber community with over 86,000 followers and a Telegram channel with 1,700 followers. The ministry uses both messengers mainly to warn people about emergency situations.
Source: https://eng.belta.by/society/view/twitter-named-best-emergency-communication-platform-115297-2018/