Open Source Homeland

The media loves these kinds of “silly-thing-was-important” stories, but mass text messaging from an emergency can serve a huge purpose in recovery effort (”careful– there’s gas leaks everywhere, “there’s a pocket of air in the bulkhead”, “approach fromthe left”, etc.)

OMG: Text messaging an important part of response - Yahoo News
Snodgrass was one of the last people off the plane. He told The Herald of Rock Hill that he called his wife as he stood in shin-deep water on the wing, waiting to be rescued. She was distraught, watching television and fearing the worst after getting that text message, but all was well.

Ferry boat captains and passengers helped in pulling all crash survivors to safety:

All 155 survive plane crash in NYC’s Hudson River - Yahoo News
The plane was submerged in the icy waters up to the windows when rescuers in Coast Guard vessels and ferry boats arrived, opened the door and pulled passengers in yellow life vests from the aircraft, whose fuselage appeared intact. The plane was sinking in the near-freezing water on one of the coldest days of the year, with the mercury around 20 degrees.