We saw this after the Virginia Tech shooting, too.
At least a dozen sites, one with more than 30,000 members by Friday morning, were created on Facebook.
The Chicago Tribune reported this morning:
Jim Combs, a Harper College student who is transferring to NIU this fall, created the Facebook group at 4:30 p.m., an hour and a half after the shootings began.
"Like with any tragedy, you feel like you need to say something," said Combs, 19. "Since I'm going to be part of the family, I felt like there needed to be a safe haven for the students."
...Steve Ungar, a sophomore majoring in mechanical engineering, said his cell phone service has been out since the shooting. He has kept in touch with friends only through Facebook and AOL Instant Messenger, a popular instant messaging program.
"I found out by Facebook that one of my friends was a victim, and she was in critical condition," Ungar said in an instant message.
Ungar found out through a chain of friends that the girl was shot. He looked up her Facebook page and saw that friends had posted messages wishing her a speedy recovery.
"I saw people writing things on her wall," said Ungar, referring to a Facebook feature that functions as an online bulletin board.
