Currently, Munich is in the midst of an active shooter situation with reports circulating of several deaths already and police still searching for the gunman.
Twitter has joined the fray by offering safe haven for those needing a place to get inside, and away from a potentially deadly scenario on the streets of Munich. Currently, the hashtag #offenetuer (open door) is guiding those seeking refuge to places where they can find safe haven and get off the streets while police attempt to find the gunman.
The shooting took place at the Olympia shopping center in the north-western Moosach district and saw shop workers unable to leave the building. Currently, details are few, but there doesn’t seem to be any information concerning motive for the attack although security forces have been on alert after a teenage migrant stabbed and injured five people on a train in Bavaria on Monday in an attack. The attack was claimed by the Islamic State.
Authorities are warning of the danger of further incidents, and those near the area are encouraged to seek shelter inside until police can find the gunman.
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Currently, there are thousands of posts using the hashtag, and hundreds more with each passing minute.
Hashtags on Twitter and Facebook’s “check in” feature detail the application of social media as not only a tool to deliver real-time news updates during situations such as these, but also to lend a helping hand to those in need. Seeking refuge and assistance during times of crisis is of the utmost importance, and social media is a powerful tool that delivers the message in real-time, a tool that could be responsible for countless lives saved, all from a simple hashtag.
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