As most of you already know there was a 5.8 earthquake centered in Mineral, Virginia on Tuesday August 23 at 1:51 in the afternoon Eastern Standard Time. This quake was felt and reported from many different locations in an approximately a 650 km radius. That is as far north as Ontario, Canada, east into Kentucky, and as far south as South Carolina.

The U.S. Capital and New York City Hall were temporarily evacuated. There was also damage reported at the National Cathedral in D.C, where at least three of the pinnacles of the central tower had broken off. Cell phone service was sketchy in some areas due to damage and call volume, but obviously a lot of calls and messages did come through based on the first reports during and following the earthquake. The amazing thing is where the first reports came from.

The breaking news was not from a traditional radio or television reporter but from people at the epicenter (center of the earthquake) who tweeted, sent updates via Facebook, Foursquare, and other social media sites to notify friends, loved ones and followers about their situation. These reports were a few minutes ahead of any “official” report by traditional sources.

If you follow this link to http://earthquake.usgs.gov you will see a user generated map that gives you an idea of how strong and wide spread this quake was. You can look at charts and other data as well. The role that social media however played in this incident really shows how fast we all can connect these days. If fact some of the best information that you can get about this earthquake comes from the people who experienced it. The rate of information sharing is just amazing.

Using social media, the United States Geological Survey (USGS) also announced to the people in this area to be prepared to experience aftershocks. This forewarning in certain situations can help to save lives and reduce injury. These methods can be used to coordinate and assist rescue services as well. In fact on the day of the quake, the head of the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Craig Fugate, used Twitter to ask Washington residents to refrain from using their cell phones unless it was an emergency.

You really can’t discount the positive aspect that social media played during this disaster. From allowing real time updates, to letting people know what to do and where to go, social media really can make a ton of difference during a disaster.