When water or fire arrives, the first question is where to act first. European emergency services answer with forecasts, mapping, and automatic delineation, and they can be integrated into your system before the next crisis.
2024 Valencia floods: >53,000 ha in emergency mapping
Four pieces of the European emergency service, each with its access conditions: what is open, what is for partners only, and what each piece contributes when time is short.
During the 2024 Valencia floods (activation EMSR773, October 2024), Copernicus emergency mapping quantified more than 53,000 hectares affected within the first days. Activation is restricted to authorized users; the resulting products can be downloaded.
EMSR773: >53,000 ha · 10-2024
EFAS, operational since 2012, is the first operational hydrological network in Europe and anticipates floods up to 10 days ahead. Its real-time layer is for partners only, but the archive is public. And GloFAS is global and fully open.
EFAS: up to 10 days · since 2012
Global Flood Monitoring processes all incoming Sentinel-1 SAR imagery in near real time and maps the water extent with three independent algorithms: by day, by night, and through clouds.
Sentinel-1 · 3 algorithms
Crisis viewers, triggers for anticipatory action, and impact assessment: CEMS products can be integrated into civil protection systems and into the decision systems of whoever manages the emergency.
CEMS: mapping since 2012
The record of Spain's public insurer for extraordinary risks shows why you cannot plan the next crisis from memories of the last one: the largest event in half a century of data arrived all at once in 2024.
In an emergency, the alert, the water extent, and the damage report must appear in the system your team already uses. We integrate these services into the viewers and protocols of civil protection, basin authorities, and insurers, before they are needed:
The Sentinel-1 radar (SAR, a sensor that lights the ground with its own signal and does not need sunlight) sees through clouds and rain. We compare the water signal, which reflects little and looks dark, with the dry ground, and we draw the flooded area. The result is a map of the land under water, so you can decide which roads to close and where to send crews first, even under a closed sky.
Sentinel-1 · radar (SAR) · sees through clouds
We start from the rain forecast and the river flow modeled by EFAS, the European flood alert system. Its hydrological model turns expected rain into how much water each river will carry and when. From that we issue a warning days ahead, so you can start your protocol and protect the key points before the level rises.
EFAS · flood warning · up to 10 days
We take one Sentinel-2 image from before the fire and one from after, then compute the NBR index (a simple calculation that compares visible and infrared light to tell green land from charred land). The change between the two dates marks the perimeter and the severity of the burned area. That map guides restoration, erosion control, and aid claims, stand by stand.
Sentinel-2 · NBR index · before and after
Tell us your territory and your protocol. We will tell you which European services you can integrate today, and which alerts you would have in the next crisis.
Talk to the team