Verificado19S
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Background
The earthquake of September 19, 2017 caused severe damage in parts of Mexico City and in the states of Morelos and Puebla, and false information spread quickly in the ensuing chaos. Collapsed telephone networks and congested communication platforms ob-structed the flow of urgent information. Confusion about the number and location of damaged buildings alarmed the population who wanted to contact friends and family. Frustrated by the authorities’ oversights, deficiencies, and negligence, thousands of volunteers self-organized to provide assistance. However, a lack of central organi-zation caused too many people to gather around disaster zones, emer-gency supply centers, and Red Cross installations—sometimes even blocking access roads. Compounding the problem, widespread confu-sion was generated by wrong or out-of-date information circulating on social networks and via WhatsApp, interfering with the proper dis-tribution of resources and provisions. Many well-intentioned efforts did not necessarily contribute to improving the situation.
Moving forward
In the immediate aftermath of the earthquake and in response to the emergency situation, a group of organizations and individuals in-cluding activists, journalists, and programmers contacted one an-other and met at Centro Horizontal’s premises in Mexico City. They wanted to provide carefully verified information to the media and to different social network platforms, in order to channel materials and resources to the rescue workers searching for survivors in the rubble of collapsed buildings. The group agreed to draw up a map and a collaborative database that could fill in the gaps left by the informa-tion provided by official government sources, and to provide fact-checked, publicly available data. This became #Verificado19S, an emergency response and assistance movement that remained oper-ational in the hours, weeks, and months following the earthquake.
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Making a change
The first steps were taken hours after the earthquake: using Google Maps, the idea was to locate collapsed structures, shelters, and emer-gency supply centers, as well as to identify needs for basic provisions, medicines, tools, and specialists—information that was reported di-rectly from the access points to the disaster zones. The map soon proved insufficient to connect the amount of information with the demand. As a result, a platform was created using Google Crisis Maps, combining information shared by citizens in Mexico City, Puebla, and Morelos together with the contents from various databases.
The project created a system of fact-checkers who confirmed and up-dated needs in disaster zones where there were still lives to be saved. These volunteers reported to the “nodes” where people were monitor-ing neighborhood WhatsApp chats, social networks, and makmonitor-ing con-tact with internal and external networks able to provide the necessary resources. As the situation evolved, the fact-checkers became known in the disaster zones, helping the flow of direct information with the rescue teams and those in charge of administering supplies.
The data from other platforms, as well as information verified by the team, were added as different layers on the Crisis Map, including:
– Damage reported in the last 24 hours (collapses, leaks, etc.).
– Emergency supply centers active in the last 24 hours.
– Shelters reported in the last 24 hours.
– Fact-checked information received via external surveys and from other sources.
– Districts classified by the Interior Ministry as being in a state of emergency.
– Details about emergency supply centers, provided by Grupo Walmart.
– Lists of collapsed structures from the official federal government website.
– Free internet access points in Mexico City.
– Reported needs from Sismo México.
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Social impact
More than 500 people volunteered to join the #Verificado19S net-work, either in the field or in the offices. The initiative became one of the most reliable, up-to-date, and frequently visited information platforms following the earthquake. Ten days after the disaster, #Verificado19S had processed more than 20,000 pieces of information, integrated eight maps, and distributed ten questionnaires which the public could use to report collapsed buildings and items needed at the emergency supply centers and shelters.
The information provided by #Verificado19S was also used for a net-work of cyclists, motorcyclists, car owners, and other drivers who volunteered to transport tools, provisions, medicines, and rescue workers to the disaster zones as required.
After the emergency phase, #Verificado19S continued working with partner organizations and volunteers. In 2019, they launched an on-line platform that collected the lessons learned from the experience. Although the movement gradually fell apart, it managed to compile information and offer recommendations for civil society and orga-nized emergency response initiatives in various manuals published on its official website.
Success factors
– Organized volunteer network to fact-check information and channel contributions made by the public
– Independent and politically-neutral platform
– Support and synergy with civil society organizations
– Swift implementation thanks to networks of trust, based on preexisting relationships
– Availability of a suitable center of operations during the emergency
– Use of technological tools on accessible and easy-to-use platforms
– Real-time information
– Creation of an official account that helped build credibility and trust, and to disseminate information labeled
#Verificado19S
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Challenges
– Developing methodologies to counteract fake news in emergency situations
– Coordinating and articulating efforts with institutions and organizations to avoid duplicating information or obstructing other people’s work; and in order to increase the added value of #Verificado19S in emergency and crisis response and rescue phases
– Adapting or knowing about the technological tools that can be used during a crisis and that are appropriate for the context
– Communicating and raising people’s awareness about the existence of the platform so that they can use it in a disaster situation
– Establishing mechanisms for differentiated operations by area (eg in urban and rural zones)
– Preestablishing roles, responsibilities, and mechanisms for decision-making
– Preidentifying necessary job profiles and roles
– Having a system in place to activate and manage volunteers
– Creating strategies to monitor and measure impact in order to share achievements
– Sharing participants’ agendas and visions in order to identify possible synergies and to avoid conflicts of interest in joint actions
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Key lessons learned
– Preventive planning could boost the initiative’s effectiveness, cutting down organization and response times.
– The need to avoid people taking on “irreplaceable” roles during an emergency response, possibly by setting up a system of substitutes and efficiently distributing responsibilities. Planning and predefining chains of command is essential.
– Psycho-emotional support is fundamental, together with monitoring and self-care systems for those involved in the emergency responds to reduce the risk of frustration, work overload, burnout, or post-traumatic stress.
Strategic partners
– Ahora
– Artículo 19
– Bicitekas
– CartoCrítica
– Cítrico
– Centro PRODH
– Centro Nacional de Comunicación Social
– Codeando México
– Cultura colectiva
– Data cívica
– Datank
– Democracia deliberada
– Devf
– Fósforo
– Horizontal
– La lonja MX
– OPI Analytics
– Oxfam México
– R3D: Red en defensa de los derechos digitales
– Revista Paradigmas
– Ruta cívica
– Serapaz AC
– SocialTIC
– The Data Pub
– Tú, constituyente
– Vice
Further information
– verificado19s.org
