Real-Time Flood Monitoring & Early Warning System

Problem statement

Floods cause massive destruction due to lack of timely alerts. Manual monitoring of rivers and reservoirs is slow and error-prone. A real-time automated system is required to monitor rising water levels and alert authorities before the situation becomes critical.

Abstract

This project implements an IoT-based flood monitoring system using ultrasonic water-level sensors, rainfall sensors and flow-rate sensors deployed near rivers or reservoirs. The data is transmitted to a cloud server, where thresholds and prediction models detect dangerous rises. When risk levels are crossed, SMS/app alerts are sent to residents and authorities. A dashboard visualizes historical water levels, rainfall trends, and predicted flood-risk zones.

Components required

• ESP32 / ESP8266
• Ultrasonic water level sensor
• Rainfall sensor
• Flow rate sensor
• Solar power (optional)
• Cloud server + dashboard
• Twilio / Firebase for alerts

Block diagram

Working

The ESP32 reads water-level, rainfall and flow-rate values at regular intervals and publishes them to the cloud. Threshold logic detects rapid rises in water level. A simple prediction model calculates flood probability based on trends. If danger is detected, the system sends alerts via SMS or push notification. The dashboard shows real-time water level graphs and early warnings.

Applications

• River and dam monitoring
• Urban stormwater management
• Disaster-prevention systems
• Smart city environmental safety