Re: How does an FM radio "save lives"?
... Except that SMS messages have no guarantee of delivery. There is an exception, though: Most smartphone in the US are capable of receiving wireless emergency alerts (unless you've gone in and turned them off; they are turned on by default). These are smilar to SMS messages, but go through a different system and have priority over data and voice traffic. Unfortunately, it's not a mandatory thing, so participation varies by carrier.
Presumably, FM radio would be able to do emergency broadcast alerts, which is what was used prior to everyone having a handheld computer that's connected to a wireless data network...
Oh and also, it's entirely possible for cell coverage to get swamped, overwhelmed, etc. My personal experience with that was 9/11 attacks, and just about everyone still alive in NYC tried to make cell phone calls all at once- the result of that was the cell network taking a pub break.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
