First responder social network

| 08.15.2007 | 08:00:179201 |

August 15 '07: FirefighterNation.com is a new social network dedicated to first responders as well as firefighters. The First Response Coalition reported that the site is run by the former publisher of Firehouse.com, Dave Iannone. Those who join the site can participate in chat and forum groups, posts profiles and media such as videos, photos and blog posts.

Video postings show response operations in the field as well as other related material. There is also a daily news update showing videos of fires and response operations around the U.S.

The emergence of social networks has potential to aid the response community. Recently when the I-35W bridge in Minneapolis collapsed, residents used their cell phones and cameras to post media to their websites. Emergency officials used those pictures to help aid in understanding how the bridge collapsed.

Futhermore, in April after the Virginia Tech massacre, the Roanoke Times reported that after phone lines crashed, students began releasing information about their whereabouts, health status and location using social sites such as Myspace.com and Facebook.com.