Radio, whether local FM signals, or longer-range shortwave transmissions, continue to be the most immediate way to exchange information in an emergency or disaster. Last week in Nepal, after a 7.8 magnitude quake left at least 4,000 dead, shortwave sounds played an important role in recovery efforts. Here, via the SWLing Post blog, is one example:

My pal, ?@K7al_L3afta, recently posted the following recording of the Nepal emergency amateur radio net via Twitter:

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Wikipedia says the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center in Manhattan in 2001, the 2003 North America blackout, and Hurricane Katrina in September 2005, are three recent times in the United States when, "amateur radio was used to coordinate disaster relief activities when other systems failed." In March, Hurricane Pam destroyed much of the island of Vanuata, with Vanuatu Net, "operating daily at 0730 Local time, 2030 ZULU during cruising season on 8.230 with a fallback frequency of 8.188."