Digital Smarts - Turning Your Phone Into an Early Warning System

Did you know you can use your smartphone as an early warning system for emergency situations? Check out the recent article from the NY Times that explains how to enable your phone to automatically receive free extreme weather alerts, messages about local emergencies and alerts regarding missing children.  The Google Public Alerts system from the Google Crisis Response Team may also be useful for getting information before or during natural disasters. Another alert system that is available for desktop as well as mobile browsers is the Public Alerts map, which shows where emergencies are happening around the world and offers links to traffic, weather, evacuation resources and more.