Google expands AI service to Spain to predict floods in a week

With Adding 60 new countries In Africa, Asia-Pacific, Europe, Central and South America, there are 80 countries covered by this service, which governments, humanitarian organizations and residents of these regions have access to and critical information a week in advance. . That’s 48 hours more than a year ago.

with this system Google hopes to contribute to people’s safety Considering the increase in the frequency and intensity of natural disasters due to climate change. Flooding is certain to be one of the main climate threats, with floods affecting more than 250 million people and causing nearly $10,000 million in economic damage, according to the UN Climate Change Expert Group (IPCC).

The “Flood Hub” platform provides the forecast of river floods, showing where and when rivers will flood in different parts of the world. where a population of approximately 460 million people live.

From this new expansion of countries, the platform incorporates parts of the world where a higher percentage of the population is at risk of flooding, such as the Netherlands, Vietnam, Myanmar, Laos and Cambodia.

Moreover Includes countries with extreme weather events in Europe including Belgium, Spain and Germanyor as the Central American Dry Corridor that runs through Nicaragua, Honduras, and Guatemala.

Google says it’s working to expand flood forecast alerts in Finder and Maps over the next 12 months, so users of our products can access this information when they need it most.

Google’s first flooding AI service was launched in India and Bangladesh in 2018 to help mitigate the devastating effects of the annual flood. In 2022, alerts have expanded to 18 more countries, and this Tuesday the service has been expanded to reach 80 countries.

Google Floods a combination of two modelsa hydrological model that estimates the volume of water carried by rivers, and another flood model that calculates which areas may be affected and how high the water may rise.

The tool is part of the tech company’s goal of facilitating crisis response to critical events, not just floods, but wildfires and earthquakes.

For example, Google.org to assist flood-vulnerable communities that do not have direct access to alerts, Indian Red Cross Society and Yale University Economics for Inclusivity teamIn creating “analog” alert networks of volunteers who are trained, encouraged, and have a reputation in their communities, to expand the reach of Flood Hub alerts.

According to a recent study by a Yale University team, communities with local volunteers are 50 percent more likely to be warned before a flood hits.

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