Technology
People are worried about their friends and families. Now for them, Facebook has come up with a 'safety check' feature. Someone in the affected region can use the feature to let their closed ones know that they are safe.
Updated : Mar 12, 2018, 02:23 AM IST
An earthquake measuring 7.9 magnitude struck west of the ancient Nepali capital of Kathmandu on Saturday, causing buildings to collapse, injuring many and leaving a pall of dust over the city, witnesses said. The death toll has crossed 1457 as Kathmandu's decrepit buildings, crisscrossed by narrow alleys, are home to large families. In India too its repurcussion was felt. At least 51 people on Sunday were killed and 237 injured in various parts of the country in a powerful earthquake, with epicentre in Nepal, which destroyed or damaged several houses and buildings.
Bihar, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, bordering Nepal, were the worst-hit parts of India in the quake measuring 7.9 on the Richter Scale. Minister of State for Home Kiren Rijiju told PTI that Bihar accounted for the highest number of deaths--38--and 133 people were injured in the state.
Now telecommunication facility is limping back to normal in many of the affected areas. People are worried about their friends and families. Now for them, Facebook has come up with a 'safety check' feature. Someone in the affected region can use the feature to let their closed ones know that they are safe.
Safety Check’feature asks users to update their safety status if the person lives in the affected region. It then generates a notification to let friends of the user known that the person concerned is safe.One can also mark their friends safe by using this link https://www.facebook.com/safetycheck/nepalearthquake
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced :
"This morning we activated Safety Check for people affected by the earthquake in Nepal. It's a simple way to let family and friends know you're okay. If you're in one of the areas affected by the earthquake, you'll get a notification asking if you're safe, and whether you want to check on any of your friends. When disasters happen, people need to know their loved ones are safe. It's moments like this that being able to connect really matters. My thoughts are with everyone who's been caught up in this tragedy."
With agency inputs