• Forest fire

  When following media with regard to forest fires in Europe, first references are more and more related with critical drought situations. The EU provides significant information support by its European Drought Observatory services. In case of an incident, it is observed through fire spreading to monitoring of the fire zone. Stationary forest observation systems and mobile robots can be used to acquire data from forests. To effectively fight large fires, it is necessary to detect them at an early stage to be able to immediately initiate suppression measures. Prediction and quick response to situational events are crucial capabilities.

• Flooding Flooding events are frequently reported in news across the globe, but increasingly from all over Europe. We start focusing on pluvial flooding: Events when, for instance, urban drainage systems exceed their capacity due to heavy rainfalls. Another relevant type is called fluvial flooding which applies along rivers. Heavy rainfall can be anticipated based on satellite images and forecasts. Nonetheless, there is always uncertainty about debris and wooden material that is carried by the water. Additionally, the accumulation of water and its impact on drainage systems can hardly be estimated. So action planning depends on predictions based on current data acquired by sensors like river gauge sensors or drones that are specifically dispatched.

Photos courtesy of DRZ.