OIC Convener praises winter messaging

The Convener of Orkney Islands Council has praised the incredible reach of social media in aiding the winter messaging to our communities.

Councillor Harvey Johnston commended the response from thousands of Orkney residents in showing their appreciation for the work being done.

“Social media can be a double-edged sword at times, but it has proved to be an invaluable tool in keeping the public informed since the icy blast tightened its grip, particularly this weekend.

“The tremendous positive feedback and information sharing, not just by the wider public and organisations in our community, but also from our local media channels – Radio Orkney and The Orcadian - has demonstrated that community spirit is alive and well in Orkney.

“Hundreds of messages of thanks, thousands of ‘likes’ have been viewed by our gritter crews via the OIC Updates Facebook page, which was used to keep the public informed on ever-changing conditions as quickly as possible through posts and updates. Folk were also able to help by sharing information from their areas within our public posts.

“This is the first time in ten years that we have had such a prolonged spell of snow and ice and combined with high winds led to some precarious conditions at the weekend. Sharing information on road closures, particularly on the primary 1 routes and the barriers, general conditions and just asking folk to stay home when at all possible was imperative for everyone’s safety.

“Facebook was in its infancy the last time Orkney endured such a wintry spell – so this was our first experience of using such a tool and it worked incredibly well.

“Thank you to everyone – your positive feedback was passed across to our staff and lifted many spirits.”