http://www.newsvend.com New research from American Red Cross has revealed that many web users would turn to social media to seek help for themselves or others during emergencies.

The online survey found that one in five adults would try to contact helpers through a digital means such as e-mail, websites or social media, including Twitter and Facebook.

Seventy four per cent of people expected help to come less than an hour after their tweet or Facebook post.

The survey also found that social media sites are the fourth most popular source for emergency information, after television news, radio and online news sites.