Google Maps is probably the most basic of Google apps anyone uses. Now Google is finding ways to make it smarter by alerting its users about when disaster is about to strike or how to stay safe and what to do when it does strikes. The tech giant has revealed two new safety detection features that will help users of Android smartphones or Google Maps seek shelter or navigate safely during an earthquake or wildfire.
With the introduction of the feature, when a user searches &ldquowildfire in California&rdquo or any other region, Google will provide a wildfire boundary map that will help the user understand the
size and scope of the fire in near-real-time.
The company&rsquos blog post states that the feature will provide information on how to avoid the fire while traveling and SOS Alerts will be sent to notify anyone within the fire&rsquos immediate area during the outbreak. Google Maps users in the affected region will get pop-up updates on road closures, traffic, navigation, and related news stories.
The feature will notify travellers and commuters regarding any upcoming disasters predicted in a particular region and will alert all Android users about any earthquakes happening or bound to happen, starting with those in the California region. The direct pings about an earthquake about to hit will be sent out giving the users a few extra minutes to seek shelter.
The accurate information about the fire&rsquos growth will be assimilated using data from the National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration&rsquos (NOAA) satellites along with the Google Earth satellite.
Currently going through a test run in California, the earthquake alerts are expected to roll out to all
the disaster-affected countries in the world. This will be useful feature as the number of wildfires around the world has multiplied four times since 1970s.