Google has announced public emergency alerts for ‘floods’ in India. Google has in the past activated its emergency search pages when floods hit Chennai, Kashmir and in times of the other natural disasters in India.
Google says that now users in India will be able to find ‘flood alerts’ along with ‘river level’ information for more than 170 areas in which the Central Water Commission (CWC) has active observation stations.
These alerts will be publicly available on Google web search, Google Now cards in the Google app, Google Maps, and on the Google Public Alerts homepage, and can be accessed on desktop and mobile devices. The alerts will be created and shared using data provided by the CWC.
“Timely information is the first step in disaster preparedness and has the potential to save thousands of lives lost to natural disasters each year. By making critical information more widely available to people, ‘Flood Alerts’ will enable citizens across the country to make quicker and more informed decisions,” said Payal Patel, Product Manager in a press release.
In 2015, Google introduced ‘cyclone alerts’ to show information about cyclone’s in India. Clicking on the alert help users find information with details about the hazard, including a map and expected timeline, as well as tips on how to stay safe. Users can browse all active alerts at google.org/publicalerts.
Google says that chronic floods during the monsoon season on an average affect more than 30 million Indians annually.