The Denver Post: Twitter limits that snarled National Weather Service storm-tracking this week dramatized the extent to which government agencies tasked with protecting public safety have come to rely on that platform for scanning and sending crisis communications amid perils that can threaten the lives of the people they serve.

Severe storms holding hail, heavy rain, and possibly tornadoes, were sweeping toward Colorado’s Front Range cities. Hundreds of thousands of people were gathering outside for July Fourth celebrations. NWS meteorologists and their dispersed network of trained volunteer storm spotters were using Twitter to send and receive information as they monitored threats.

But the new temporary Twitter limits on usage – which kicked in Saturday without advance notice — shut down their flow. This was the latest of the adjustments since Twitter owner Elon Musk bought the company last year for $44 billion and began work to shore it up financially.

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