Facebook launches safety check after Paris attacks

Facebook launches safety check after Paris attacks

Facebook has set up a safety check page to help people establish whether friends and family in Paris are safe after a night of terror left nearly 150 people dead.

“My thoughts are with everyone in Paris tonight,” said Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg in a post.

“Violence like this has no place in any city or country in the world. We’ve activated Safety Check, so if you’re in Paris you can mark yourself safe or check on your friends and family.”

Safety check lets you check yourself in as safe, or mark friends in the area who you know are safe.

A short explainer told people waking up the horrific news what had happened: “French President François Hollande has declared a state of emergency across France after a series of terror attacks on Friday night. The duration of the state of emergency remains unknown.”

The almost two million followers of the page were also rallying to help and providing details of emergency shelters where needed.

The Department of International Relations and Co-Operation (Dirco) was also working to establish the safety of South Africans currently in France.

Dirco spokesperson Clayson Monyela said they had established that embassy staff and the forward delegation to Cop21 were safe.

Dirco’s emergency line (+27)351 1000, based in Pretoria, is also available for concerned friends and family to check on loved ones.

Source – News24

South Africa Today – World News