As noted below, Safe and Well has been discontinued by the American Red Cross. This certainly can have disaster implications to amateur radio operations.
Within hours of an emergency or disaster, ex. hurricane, ice storm, etc. the cellular telephone networks are overworked by folks who have not learned that texting will get through before a voice call will.
Within hours, calls for "health and welfare" messages come from hams seeking information on the channels to use to get word to loved ones in an impacted zone.
Please be aware of these suggestions:
1. Learn how to set up personal networks in order to communicate with "lifelines" and loved ones. GroupMe, WhatsApp, Messenger, Twitter, etc. offer direct messaging to lists of people. Get your smart grandson to set up a family list.
2. Read the "Tips for Contacting Loved Ones" at the link above to Safe and Well.
3. Find your local amateur radio operator and ask them to send a "radiogram". The caveat here is that not every amateur radio operator knows how to send a message AND there is no guarantee that a sent message may reach the destination. These volunteers can only try. There is no cost for the trying.
4. Better yet, become licensed as an amateur radio operator and learn how to help your neighbors with contacts into a disaster zone. The training is free. The license is not. Morse Code is not required (but it is fun to learn).
For years, emergency managers have encouraged people to Plan, Prepare, Practice in order to overcome the first 72 hours of any disaster. It's time to do that, especially since it's National Preparedness Month.
Safe and Well Platform Ending FAQs
Disaster Cycle Services Job Tools
Respond / Reunification
Message for Partners
Unfortunately, the platform which currently hosts the American Red Cross Safe and Well website, redcross.org/safeandwell, has become obsolete due to technology changes, and will be deactivated at midnight on December 29, 2020. While this means that we won’t have a self-service website for people to register or search for loved ones after disasters, we want to reassure you that the Red Cross remains committed to this work. Our less public, behind the scenes efforts to reunite loved ones are not going away.
The Safe and Well website has served as the public-facing part of the Red Cross Reunification Program and has been used by a variety of partners over the past 14 years. Now, with more and more people depending on mobile apps to communicate and connect, we will adapt our messaging and encourage the public to use our free Red Cross Emergency app. The app features an “I’m Safe” button that allows users to post a message to their social accounts or send an email to a pre-determined list, letting people know they are safe and out of harm’s way.
In the coming days, the Reunification team at headquarters will connect with our national partners to share this important update. We have also created a template message for field teams to share with local partners who use Safe and Well. As part of this notification, we will encourage local partners to remove Safe and Well from their continuity of operations plan and contact their local Red Cross to talk about ways the Red Cross may be able to support them moving forward.
It’s important to note, the Red Cross will continue to support requests for reunification that come in through our national call center, chapter network, or through emergency welfare inquiries (EWI), family reunification requests (FRR) and military welfare inquiries (MWI). Our team will also explore options to support similar safe and well services in the future as needs change.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q. What is the timeline for discontinuation of the Safe and Well website?
A. Between December 22 and 29, users will still be able to access safeandwell.org, however they will receive a message that the site will no longer be available after December 29.
Beginning on December 30, users will receive a message when attempting to access safeandwell.org explaining that the site has been discontinued and sharing additional relevant information.
Q. What do we tell people who are looking for someone after a disaster?
A. We encourage people to talk with their families before disaster strikes and set up a communication plan. In addition, the free Red Cross Emergency app features an “I’m Safe” button that allows users to post a message to their social accounts or send an email to a pre-determined list, letting people know
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they are safe and out of harm’s way. If you believe your family member to be missing after a disaster, please follow local emergency guidance on missing persons.
Q. What do we tell our partners who contact us about their continuity of operations plan? A. We recommend sharing this information:
1. Encourage the partner to connect with emergency management to determine what alert systems are in place in their community.
2. Educate partners on the free Red Cross Emergency app and how they can help their employees create a communication plan as part of their personal preparedness.
3. Advise partners about the aspects of the Red Cross reunification program that will remain available to them.
Q. Is there another public facing platform that we can transition the Safe and Well program to? A. There are other platforms available, but none that we are recommending or partnering with at this time. It’s important to note, the Red Cross will continue to support requests for reunification that come in through our national call center including emergency welfare inquiries (EWI), family reunification requests (FRR) and military welfare inquiries (MWI). Our team will also explore options to support similar safe and well services in the future as needs change.
Q. How many people have been helped over the life of the Safe and Well program? A. The Safe and Well website was created in 2006 as a result of Hurricane Katrina with funding from FEMA. We upgraded the site to its current version in July 2010 and it has facilitated more than 20,000 matches in the past 10 years. In 2019, Hurricanes Michael and Florence as well as the tragic Camp Fire response in California were some of the most significant disasters supported by this program with that year alone having more than 3,400 matched search inquiries.
Q. How do we help our staff and workforce prepare now that the safe and well product and registration options are no longer available?
A. The Safe and Well website was a significant tool for the Red Cross, but it isn’t all encompassing of our work. While this means that we won’t have a self-service website for people to register or search for loved ones after disasters, we want to reassure you that the Red Cross remains committed to post disaster reunification efforts. Our less public, behind the scenes efforts to reunite loved ones are not going away. For example:
• We will still be able to search registration lists for congregate and non-congregate shelters. • We will still be able to take names of missing people to match against said lists as well as to add to the Emergency Welfare Inquiry/Family Reunification Request Log (RRL) system used to track and located EWI, FRR and MWI cases.
• The public will still be able to call us during a disaster for help.
• Through our messaging we can still encourage people affected by disasters to reach out to their loved ones and to use the free Red Cross Emergency app which features an “I’m Safe” button that allows users to post a message to their social accounts or send an email to a pre-determined list, letting people know they are safe and out of harm’s way.
• We will modify the existing Helper Tool (formerly used in concert with the website) for regions and relief operations to use as an internal tool to “register” shelter residents if needed.
RES Safe and Well Platform Ending FAQs V.1.0 2020.12.17 2
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