Google Release Enhanced Flood Forecasting, Wildfire Tracking Services as Calamities are Becoming Harsher Due to Climate Change

Google announced that it had expanded its flood forecasting and wildfire tracking services to cover more than 20 countries in conjunction with the COP27 summit of the United Nations this week.

The Verge reports that Google's artificial intelligence-driven wildfire warning system will now cover the US, Canada, Mexico, and some parts of Australia. Likewise, they have also added more countries for their flood forecasting service. The move was made to provide more information as calamities are becoming harsher due to climate change.

(Photo: SAJJAD HUSSAIN/AFP via Getty Images)
Vegetable vendors clean their stock in a flooded area after water levels of the Yamuna River increased due to recent rainfalls in New Delhi on September 28, 2022.

Google Uses Artificial Intelligence to Help Address Climate Crisis

A UN report reveals that at least half of the world lacks adequate early warning systems for calamities, such as floods and wildfires. That means there is a lack of lifesaving technology that can give people enough lead time to prepare for these disasters. As a response, Google has improved its services to fill some gaps in calamity intervention and preparation.

Google first started using AI to predict floods in India's Patna region in 2018, and since then, the program has expanded to the entire country and included some parts of Bangladesh by 2020. In 2021, the company sent flood notifications to 23 million people in two flood-prone countries, and now it is servicing 15 countries in Africa and three more in Asia and Latin America.

The notifications were sent to Android phone users and smartphones with the installed Google search application. Even companies and organizations can also sign up to receive the service, although an internet connection is a must to enable Google location services.

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FloodHub

As part of Google's Crisis Response efforts, they have improved their flooding forecasting service and launched the new FloodHub. It is a platform that displays flooding forecasts, showing when and where floods may happen to help communities directly at risk and provide critical information to aid the government and organizations.

Per Google, catastrophic damage from flooding affects more than 250 million people each year. Expanding their flood forecasting service will help more flood-prone countries. This move is made possible due to current breakthroughs in AI-based flood forecasting models and will hopefully be expanded to additional countries in the coming years.

Google's Wildfire and Hurricane Tracking Service

Around hundreds of thousands of people every year are affected by wildfires, and their frequency and size are increasing. That is why there is also a need to access accurate information when wildfires are likely to occur to inform response work.

Like FloodHub, it is powered by AI models based on satellite imagery and shows real-time people and firefighting teams. Wildfire tracking is now available in the US, Canada, Mexico, and Australia.

Aside from wildfire, access to authoritative forecasts and safety information about hurricanes can also be life-saving. Detailed forecasts from authoritative sources appear on SOS Alerts in Search and Maps to show the predicted trajectory of the storm. Machine learning is also used in this service to analyze satellite imagery after the disaster to identify which areas need help.