Google Public Alerts, launched on January 25, 2012 by a new Google Crisis Response project,  is a platform designed to bring you relevant emergency alerts when and where you’re searching for them. Information on relevant weather, public safety, and earthquake alerts from US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the National Weather Service, and the US Geological Survey (USGS) will be accessible when you search on Google Maps. For instance, at the time of this post, “Flood Indiana” triggers an alert for a Flood Warning in Northern Indiana.If a major weather event is headed for your area, you might go online to search for the information you need: What’s happening? Where and when will it strike? How severe will it be? What resources are available to help?

The Google Crisis Response team works on providing critical emergency information during crises, with its goal to surface emergency information through the online tools you use everyday, when that information is relevant and useful.