Last Friday’s story on Ashby St’s tornado warning network illustrates how digital billboards perform a huge public service by allowing government agencies to communicate with the public in an emergency. Ashby St isn’t the only out of home company which uses digital billboards to help communicate with the public in an emergency. Here’s a list Insider compiled with the help of the OAAA. You should make sure your regulatory and government agencies know about how digital billboards benefit the community.
Clear Channel posted emergency info after the 35W bridge collapsed in Minneapolis in 2007.
In 2017 California’s Stott Outdoor used digital billboards for warnings and announcements when a local dam was threatened.
FEMA has case study on Florida’s partnership with Florida out of home companies to enhance the state emergency response team’s ability to communicate critical information quickly to Floridans during disasters.
In 2013, Digital billboards warned the public of bombings at the Boston Marathon finish line.
Tornado warnings have been posted on digital billboards in Oklahoma. See this 2015 Pew Trusts article and this TV report.
Georgia uses digital billboards for emergency messaging, including weather info.
Two counties in Minnesota launched a tornado-warning program in 2013 using digital billboards.
In 2011 Albuquerque used digital billboards to avert crisis during a winter natural gas shortage
In 2018 Fairway posted hyper-localized info in Carolina communities during Hurricane Florence.
Janesville, WI has a longstanding partnership with Lamar to use digital billboards. A 2009 Police Chief article published in 2009 said donated digital billboards have been used to find missing persons, help locate fugitives, and post flood warnings when the Rock River posed danger to the public.
[wpforms id=”9787″]
Paid Advertisement
I think it should be mandatory for outdoor companies to allow access to outdoor digital billboards to the government if asked in an emergency.