Massachusetts Institute of Technology has launched a crowd-sourced flood reporting platform, https://riskmap.in , that can be used by residents to share critical updates with each other on real time.

“People affected by flooding and water-logging can add information to the web-based map using their preferred social media channels. By visiting the website, users can submit reports through Facebook Messenger, Twitter or Telegram,” read a statement. “Residents and government officials can view the map to see recent flood reports and understand changing flood conditions to avoid dangerous areas.” it added. A one-time link would be sent to users using a chat-bot to add location, flood depth, photo and description.

The statement has also highlighted the fact that residents should continue to call emergency numbers in case of life-threatening situations.

The RiskMap India project that is being piloted in Chennai has been set up and supported by TATA trusts at MIT. The initiative aims at helping both residents and the government stay up to date on real-time flooding conditions.

Riskmap is built on an open source software known as CogniCity that is used to map flooding in Indonesia and the U.S.

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