More efficient early warning for citizens

Web portal for citizens and automated warnings

All citizens can access the FIMS web portal from Telekom MMS, which also offers mobile access. In 5- to 15-minute intervals, it is updated with current data from the 470 measuring stations throughout Saxony. Anyone interested can track the water levels of nine river areas virtually live and can also view and download graphics and even some forecasts.

The system is based on a Java application server that is linked to an Oracle database. Data from external providers such as the German Weather Service and other upriver measuring stations in foreign countries are also integrated into the backend of the FIMS through the Camel Enterprise Service Bus, so that accurate predictions can be made on this basis. The seamless integration of the various data sources enables a prediction of rising levels at an earlier stage. For the Elbe catchment area, for example, this is up to 60 hours in advance.

To ensure that the system can accommodate a high user load and simultaneously guarantee a fail-safe operation during flood phases, Telekom MMS has implemented a two-line solution. If a server fails, a duplicate automatically takes over, thus enabling operation with high availability.

The higher efficiency of the new system now also makes it possible to monitor much smaller warning areas. This results in more precise warnings for the actually affected regions.

More efficient early warning and reliable information for citizens

The employees of the Flood Centre benefit from higher system automation. Before the FIMS was implemented, they had to manually or vocally enter every warning. Today the system automatically sends warnings in the form of SMS, calls or faxes. The MDR’s video text is also automatically supplied with current water levels.

The new application is much more intuitive for the more than 1,000 obligatory recipients, namely institutions such as the fire and flood departments, mayor, state administrations and disaster response agencies.

Compared to the preceding system, the FIMS is much more reliable. The Big Data application, which is storing 200 million records by now, enables flood warnings at an earlier time. As a result, the FIMS provides more security to citizens and institutions, since they can take protective measures in time.