Facebook to allow easier disaster fundraising

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IN THE hours after the fire which swept through Grenfell Tower last Wednesday, Facebook said it would soon allow its U.S. users to raise and donate money using its “Safety Check” feature, to make it easier for people affected by natural disasters and violent attacks to receive help.

“Safety Check,” launched in 2014, allows users of Facebook to assure friends that they are safe. The feature was used for the first time in the United States last year after a gunman massacred 49 people at a nightclub in Orlando, Florida.

According to an official Facebook blog posting, the fundraising tool in “Safety Check” will roll out in the coming weeks in the United States.

The social network, which has an estimated 1.94 billion users worldwide, activated “Safety Check” for users in London on Wednesday following the fire in the London housing block. It also made the tool available earlier this month following deadly attacks on London Bridge.

Facebook also said its “Community Help” feature, which helps people affected by disasters find each other locally to provide and receive assistance, would soon expand to include desktop users.