What would coverage of Hurricane Katrina have been like in the age of Twitter? Hurricane Earl was downgraded late Friday morning to a Category 1 storm, with top sustained winds near 85 mph. Coverage of the storm is on Twitter, Facebook and mobile phone applications.

Hurricane Earl was instructive, in that federal agencies are relying on a combination of new and established technologies, reports NextGov.com.

The National Hurricane Center and Federal Emergency Management Agency have worked together to reduce the chance that Earl doesn’t catch communities and local governments by surprise.

NASA flew a Global Hawk drone over Earl, the first time that had been done. The aircraft give researchers a 3-D view of the temperature, water vapor and liquid water in the hurricane.

The National Hurricane Center uses a new instrument called the Stepped Frequency Microwave Radiometer to classify a hurricane’s wind force. The equipment picks up the microwave radiation emitted from the foam the hurricane winds create on the ocean’s surface.

Earl’s top winds have been measured at 135 MPH, making the storm a Category 4.

FEMA’s Facebook page provides updates on Earl’s intensity and movement in English and Spanish, and directs visitors to the brochureware site, Ready.gov, which provides information on preparedness and response to hurricane emergencies.

In addition, FEMA and the National Hurricane Center are offering mobile versions of their sites that are designed for cell phones’ small screens and for handheld devices.

Cellular companies have announced plans to butress wireless services:

• AT&T says it has invested $500 million in its Network Disaster Recovery (NDR) organization since it was formed. The NDR function includes more than 300 technology and support trailers that AT&T is able to deploy quickly to respond to disaster situations such as severe hurricanes.
• Verizon Wireless says they have been checking cell sites and switches to ensure backup batteries are fully prepared and topping off generators to ensure continued operation of network cell sites. They have prepped and staged emergency equipment, including COWs (Cells on Wheels) and COLTs (Cells on Light Trucks) which can operate independently using a mobile satellite tower and generators on wheel.
• Sprint Nextel says it has invested more than $370 million in network enhancements for hurricane-prone states along the Gulf and Atlantic coasts and has permanent generators at all of its wireless and wireline switches.
• T-Mobile says their Incident Command Team stands ready throughout the Eastern U.S., with local Command Centers established in the following areas: Charlotte, N.C.; Washington, D.C.; Philadelphia, Pa; New York, N.Y.; Parsippany, N.J.; Long Island, N.Y.; Hartford, Conn.; and Boston, Mass.

PC Magazine reviews the Best Weather Apps for Hurricane Earl. The Red Cross is ready to open shelters, and 200 trained disaster workers have deployed to the area to assist those who may be affected by the storm. The Red Cross has posted a document on “How to Integrate Crisis Response with Social Media” on Slide Share. In areas with spotty cellphone coverage, it’s not unusual for people to be able to send instant messages or 140-character tweets when they can’t make voice calls, says David Redl of CTIA-The Wireless Association.

Following Hurricane Katrina, the FCC has been very proactive in seeking information from its licensees in the aftermath of a disaster. The Commission has also sought information from public safety agencies and health care facilities.

All voice-radio communications were lost after Katrina except for very limited radio-to-radio communications. 911 was un-available for untold numbers of victims with at least 38 of the 911 centers in the region down and out. After Katrina struck, satellite phones were often the only functional form of communications in the state.

Harris installed satellite and microwave gear when the storm caused catastrophic impacts to communications infrastructures (PSTNs, Long Distance, PSAPs, CATV, Radio). It also exposed common weak points in backup power capabilities during prolonged power outages. Here’s What the Federal Government Did in the first year following Hurricane Katrina on August 29, 2005.

Hurricanetrack.com (twitter) has live cameras and news. The FAA has Flight Delay Information for the Northeastern States. Follow Earl on Twitter (#Twitter). Gary Kee developed the Clackamas County Fire/EMS Twitter site and won a Civic Choice Award by the City of Portland.

Americans have given $25 million so far to help victims of Pakistan’s flood disaster — far less than the U.S. donations made in the immediate aftermath of other major disasters.

Experts cite the relative lack of news coverage, attitudes toward Pakistan and the nature of the disaster itself.

The Project for Excellence in Journalism said there was 10 times as much U.S. news coverage of the earthquake in Haiti as of the floods in Pakistan.

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