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This 30,000-person online chat tells you where to buy masks during the coronavirus outbreak
Hong Kongers flock to 2-week-old Telegram channel and homespun website for crowdsourced coronavirus information
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This article originally appeared on ABACUS
When Tang sensed that the stock of face masks in Hong Kong was starting to dwindle two weeks ago, he saw that something else was also in short supply: Information about where to buy them and how much they cost. The deadly coronavirus outbreak has set off a scramble for the much sought-after commodity, creating lines of thousands outside shops and overwhelming shopping agents who help customers ship back overseas purchases.
Tang, a college sophomore who asked to be identified by his surname, had an idea: What if someone pulled together that information and shared it online in an organized way? He polled people about the plan on LIHKG, an anonymous forum similar to Reddit, where his post quickly got more than 100 upvotes. “I thought LIHKG is probably the easiest way to solicit public opinion,” he said. The next day, he created a Telegram channel called “Masks and Hygiene Products Supplies Information.”
The channel gives participants one simple task: Whenever you pass by a pharmacy, go in and see if there are any masks for sale. If the answer is positive, submit the information to the channel via a Telegram bot. It also encourages people to report scams.
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