Social Networking Sites Buzz With Personal Accounts of Hurricane Irene

Social networking sites have been buzzing with personal accounts and experiences from Rumson and Fair Haven residents that truly personalize the effects of .

Social networking sites, especially Facebook and Twitter have become part of the daily lives of many. People, young and old, enjoy sharing their thoughts and ideas with all of their friends within one common forum. When an event that affects everyone occurs, people take the opportunity to share their own accounts of the happening on their profiles. This is what occurred in the anticipation and aftermath of hurricane Irene.

It all began in anticipation of Irene. People on Twitter and Facebook were declaring what was in their very own “storm survival kits”. Some mobile uploaded stashes of candy that would entertain their appetites during the storm, and the more worried folks uploaded pictures of their large flashlight and battery stashes.

Fair Haven resident Emily Ferretti, 17, mobile uploaded a picture of her favorite candy on to Facebook, claiming this was her storm survival kit. This picture can be viewed in the gallery on the right.

Kitty Saba, 17, of Rumson tweeted a picture of how local businesses in Sea Bright were preparing for the storm. Accompanied with the picture, which can be viewed in the gallery on the right, was the caption, “All boarded up!”

Social network users also took this opportunity to share their complaints. Countless statuses concerning crowded grocery stores and lines at gas stations overwhelmed Facebook and Twitter Saturday during the day.

Rachel Pederson, a Fair Haven resident, tweeted, “Adventuring in Acme. Fair Haven residents need to calm down. #ItsNotTheEndOfTheWorld!” in response to the chaos and panic of shoppers stocking up before the storm.

Facebook and Twitter fell silent during the night as many desktop users lost power and laptop users could no longer charge up their batteries. Despite extensive power outages all over the Rumson-Fair Haven area Sunday morning, people found a way to continue sharing their stories.

Pictures upon pictures of damage to the area flooded Facebook and Twitter. People uploaded accounts of tree branches snapped in half in the middle of their yards and of their flooded streets.

Jillian Dupree of Rumson mobile uploaded a picture of the damage experienced by Chapel Beach Club. This picture can be seen in the gallery to the right. From her mobile upload, it is apparent the beaches and beach clubs are definitely going to take some time to recover.

Some were more light hearted about the situation. They uploaded pictures of themselves kayaking in the streets and making the best of a normally frustrating situation.

Fair Haven resident Marissa Steffanelli mobile uploaded a picture of her and her friends kayaking in the street with the caption “Irene is so fun!”

There were some people that even claimed to be “disappointed” by Irene, claiming “it wasn’t worth all the hype.”

Peter Kane of Fair Haven tweeted, “This…is it?” on Sunday morning disappointed by expectations the media built about Irene.

Irene’s aftermath continues to be documented on both Twitter and Facebook, demonstrating the significant role of social media during major events such as hurricane Irene. 

Kane, still without power like many other Rumson-Fair Haven residents tweeted Monday afternoon, “I still turn on every light switch when I enter a room #blackoutlife.”