If you were trapped in a life-threatening situation; what would you do?
I read today about 2 young Australian girls who found themselves trapped in a stormwater drain on Sunday night. Rather than dialing 000 (the Australian equivalent to 999) or contacting friends or family directly; they instead chose to use their mobiles to update their Facebook status.
Luckily a friend saw the status updates and had the common sense to contact the Fire Service who swiftly rescued the 10 and 12 year olds.
It's possible that the girls did not feel in any imminent danger - or at least not enough to dial 000. But this demonstrates a worrying situation where kids feel more able to communicate via Facebook rather than other methods.
I'm not saying that social media channels are bad - just that there is a need to educate kids in when using Facebook and the like are appropriate and when they're not.
Having said that; it did work!
Call me old-fashioned but if I ever find myself in a pickle I'll be sure to call 999 before updating my Facebook status....
