2012.07.16
How did you get the news when the power was out? [With poll]
JEANNA DUERSCHERL | The Roanoke Times On July 2, David Robertson and Steve Jones removed juice from the Mick-or-Mack IGA shelves in New Castle. The store had no electricity, but was still serving customers by using generator power to use their cash registers.
Now that the derecho has passed and the power is back on, we want to hear from you about how you stayed connected to news throughout the storm and the days following.
We realized that many of our readers were not getting the news the way they normally did because of power and Internet outages and many were bunking with family and friends or staying at hotels, where access to computers was more limited or non-existent. Very quickly we started using as many channels as possible to share storm and storm recovery-related news — especially mobile channels.
The night of the storm, we sent a rare text message, directing readers to our mobile website, m.roanoke.com, for updates about the power outages and storm damage. We sent another text alert on Saturday with the same message.
During the weekend, we used Twitter and Facebook around the clock to give updates on when power was expected to be restored, and even what businesses were open. Our use of Facebook that weekend might have been one of our most successful (and useful) examples of crowdsourcing: We asked our fans to report what businesses were open or closed, and that post received almost 100 comments full of helpful tips our newsroom couldn’t have produced alone.
To make it easier to find storm-related stories, we organized all of that content in one area, and those links were prominent and accessible from pages on roanoke.com and m.roanoke.com.
Later in the week, we hit the streets and captured Roanokers sounding off about the derecho in this video.
These events are hard to plan for, so we strive each time to better understand what worked and what we can do differently to keep you better informed and connected. So tell us how you stay connected and any suggestions on what we can do next time by taking the poll below.
And if you have ideas on how we can continue to harness the power of social networks for public service, please share them in the comments or in the poll.
Remember that Roanoke has lots of seniors. Many don’t have cell phones or internet.
If the power goes out, how do they get information? How do they assess the situation? How do they find out where cooling centers are?
The first thing we did was to turn on the radio. There was very little info there and it was hard to find. We need stations whose job it is to help at times like these.
Comment by John Pharis — July 20, 2012 @ 7:55 am
People can dial 2-1-1 to be connected to the 211 Virginia Information and Referral system statewide. Disaster information, such as cooling shelters, warming shelters, water and food distribution, disaster response services, emergency management contacts, FEMA information, local and state government public information etc can all be accessed this way. 2-1-1 is not an automated system. Trained Community Resource Specialists assists callers with their needs, particularly those with barriers to information access. 2-1-1 handles calls that do not rise to the level of needing 9-1-1 emergency response. This number is useful to take pressure off of the 9-1-1 system, especially during times of disaster. 2-1-1 is a nationwide number in most every state that is used for information and referral. In the Roanoke area, it is a program of the Council of Community Services.
211 Virginia can be used to connect to health and human services statewide 24/7, 365 days per year. The information provided can be as varied as where do I register to vote or register my child for kindergarten, where can I get free HIV testing, how do I get free school supplies or tutoring for my child, how can I get food if my my family is hungry, how can I help a homeless person, where can my friend access mental health services or free emergency dental care, how do I get my senior mom help in her home with household chores or Meals on Wheels, how do I get help with a prescription I cannot afford, or how can I get help with an eviction notice or utility disconnection. Callers facing homelessness, veterans, people with disabilities, senior citizens, or people seeking domestic violence services also receive assistance from 2-1-1.
Comment by Teresa — July 21, 2012 @ 1:14 pm
I agree with the above comment.
Comment by Jaime — July 21, 2012 @ 5:06 pm
Star Country 94.9 did a great job announcing who was open/closed, cooling centers, etc. Kudos to them!
Comment by Kathy — July 21, 2012 @ 7:46 pm
Put info on the RADIO! My internet and my landline phone were also down.
I had nothing. Without the newspaper I would have been clueless. I do have a cell phone also but received no text msg warning.
I listened to the radio and basically heard nothing. I could not believe it.
Comment by B C LAW — July 22, 2012 @ 9:13 am
You do not have radio as a choice. I imediately turned on a battery powered radio for info. All the AM stations were out so I tuned in to public radio FM 89.1. They offered as much info as was available. I was shocked to see very little info from the local news web sites. A missed oppertunity to inform I thought.
Comment by Craig — July 25, 2012 @ 7:38 am
Where was Mayor Bowers when all this was taking place? I guess there weren’t any ribbon cuttings scheduled, and he left town.
Comment by Lindsey — July 27, 2012 @ 9:44 am
I heard a few mentions of the cooling shelters on Q-99 and K92. I was lucky to be able to stay with family when the power was out at my house.
I agree with the folks here who say we need more local info on the radio. Generally when there is a traffic tie up on 81, the only station who will mention the problem is the local NPR station, the others don’t give any local info about bad traffic on 81.
Comment by K — July 27, 2012 @ 12:49 pm