Disasters and Twitter

Twitter is, of course, a very useful tool when it comes to managing a social-media PR campaign. However, the same tool which allows users to inform the world about their opinions on "Dancing With the Stars" can also provide a vital link to information during a disaster.

During this past weekend's central Texas fires, Twitter was my exclusive source for up-to-the-second news on the fires, and news organizations such as the Austin American-States and KUT did an outstanding job providing near-continuous updates on the firefighters progress battling the blazes, as well as the latest evacuation information.

In fact, several friends turned to me (and my smartphone) to find out the latest evacuation information for their neighborhoods.

Twitter's greatest advantage over traditional news outlets is its timeliness: Reporters, concerned residents (and, of course, PR professionals) can disseminate vital information in mere seconds, rather than waiting for a printed edition to be published, or for a station's Web site to be updated.

The perceived disadvantages of the 140-character limit have also been lessened through use of hyperlinks to full-sized news articles.

Though the fire disaster is far from over, affected residents can maintain a vital link to their communities through a simple 140 characters.