New York is using drones to warn citizens about severe weather

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Just last year, heavy rain in New York made international headlines. Streets were flooded, as were subway tunnels, water seeped into houses, created deep puddles in the street canyons between skyscrapers and flooded subways in front of Central Park. It was urgent. So urgent that Governor Kathy Hochul declared a state of emergency.

Especially in big cities like New York, it is difficult to inform the people in good time and keep them updated. Announcements are usually made through loudspeakers, but they have their limitations, whether in terms of range or sound quality. But the city wants to solve the problem – with technical innovation.

Disaster prevention: New York sends out drones

Drones are to be used in New York to warn the public about future threats. From now on, they will fly over the streets of the capital when residents need to be notified of upcoming extreme weather events.

The procedure is effective and simple: FFive teams from the Emergency Management Agency control swarms of drones through the city and suburbs of New York. They then play warnings in several languages ​​through loudspeakers over residential areas. For example, it could be about the threat of water, which could flood the cellars. This can end up being a big deal, especially in basement apartments.

The announcements aim to prepare residents to flee their flats as quickly as possible in an emergency. Especially during heavy and continuous rain, masses of water can form which can cause sudden flooding of basement flats. In 2021, 13 people drowned in their basements during Hurricane Ida.

Catastrophic storms happen again and again in New York.Photo: IMAGO Images / UPI Photo

This will be particularly difficult in residential areas where conventional alarm systems do not work. This is exactly where drones are supposed to help. However, practices such as social media alerts and cell phone messaging are still in place.

More than 2,000 non-profit institutions in the city will continue to receive additional alerts using standard methods. But the drones can reach all areas, even those where the normal communication systems do not work.

China is also already using drones

The drones are used until the weather is no longer permitted. The whole thing can take a lot of the workload off rescuers. The system is also suitable for early warning.

By the way, the idea is not completely new, but the implementation is different. Drones are often used to rescue pedestrians, for example. During the Corona lockdown, China is also relying on drones to monitor the population.