Cross-border emergency coordination and communications using social media: Developing a joint Israeli-Jordanian standard operating procedure for leveraging social media in emergencies

Social media has demonstrated survivability, when other communication networks collapse, and is thus used by the public and formal authorities in emergencies. A standard operating procedure (SOP) for utilisation of social media was developed to facilitate Jordanian-Israeli regional cooperation in response to earthquakes. On the basis of extensive literature review, six categories, classified into 30 sub-categories, were identified, for inclusion in the SOP. Two modified Delphi cycles were conducted to achieve consensus among 28 experts consisting of first responders, disaster management, command and control, and regional cooperation personnel. All categories and 26 sub-categories reached the 75% target consensus threshold. Flow diagrams and functionality were compiled and presented for approval to the joint Jordanian-Israeli development strategy forum, utilising nominal group technique. The study displayed that emergency experts from two bordering countries can effectively use social media as a collaborative platform to share and exchange information during disasters, despite different protocols and methodologies.