NetNews Usenet Archive 1992 #19/NN_1992_19.iso/spool/comp/dcom/telecom/10117

Internet Message Format | 1992-09-03 | 3.0 KB

Path: sparky!uunet!spool.mu.edu!telecom-request
Date: Thu, 3 Sep 92 07:12:34 -0700
From: rlm@ms_aspen.hac.com (Robert L. McMillin)
Newsgroups: comp.dcom.telecom
Subject: Misc.Disaster.* Newsgroups
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Rick Broadhead writes:

> I am surprised that Usenet, a powerful and international medium of
> communication, has not been more widely used to assist in the dissemination
> of information during crisis situations and calamities.  For example, I am
> sure there would be great support for newsgroups such as misc.disaster.
> reports and/or misc.disaster.coordination, which could be used:

> (a) by anxious friends and relatives to find out about friends
>     and family in disaster areas
> (b) to disseminate information on relief efforts
> (c) to provide addresses of those agencies accepting donations
> (d) to report on the situation in affected areas

misc.disaster.* group(s) would be of limited utility as a mechanism
for response to a great disaster.  The reason is that the underlying
hardware needed to make USENET work, specifically, the telephone
system, would likely be out of commission, possibly for an extended
period of time.  Luckily for the people in Florida left in the wake of
Hurricane Andrew, the telephone system still works, somewhat.  In
Mogadishu (sp?), no phone service even exists.  You can't call into or
out of the country unless you have a satellite phone or other
radio-based communication.

In the recent riots here, and during several minor earthquakes over
the last several years, I can assure you that the phone systems became
swamped.  USENET hubs that rely on the "physical transport layer" of
the public switched analog telephone network would be unusable in
times of emergency.  This would shut down many sites instantly and
greatly limit the utility of those that remained online -- probably
large commercial or academic sites with leased lines and a very good
reason for having continuous power plugged into a computer room in
case of a disaster, or were just lucky that they didn't lose power.
Again calling up the example of Florida, the power grid probably won't
get rebuilt for another six months.

Of course, it wouldn't necessarily mean that USENET wouldn't be useful
outside the area of the disaster.  It would just mean that it would be
limited to second-hand information relayed by other means -- like
amateur radio -- or publishing "send money to:" information.  I see
misc.disaster.* groups as an ancilliary means of information disbursal
at best, at least until direct satellite telephony becomes cheap and
readily available.


Robert L. McMillin                     | Voice:    [phone]
Hughes Aircraft/Hughes Training, Inc.  | Fax:      [phone]
Los Angeles, CA                        | Internet: [e-mail]