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IoT Sensors and Cloud Platform for Flood Monitoring and Response

Solution Overview

In May 2018, the city of Houston announced it was partnering with Microsoft to improve the city's quality of life and economy by connecting digital technology with the physical world.[2] This approach helps Houston improve its disaster response and recovery systems by better integrating data between departments and City partners. Following Hurricane Harvey, which dumped more than 1 trillion gallons of water on Harris County in 2017 and flooded more than 96,000 homes according to a report by the Harris County Flood Control District, Houston migrated to Microsoft's Azure cloud platform.[3][20][21]

Technical Components

Following Hurricane Harvey, Houston migrated its computer systems to Microsoft's Azure cloud platform.[3][4] Houston has broadened a network of IoT environmental sensors that collect data on water and air quality, sewer outflow and flood detection.[3] The Harris County Flood Control District installed 153 monitoring stations using a variety of water level and precipitation measurement technologies, including OTT Radar Level Sensors (OTT RLS), OTT Compact Bubbler Sensors (CBS), and pressure transducers.[8] The District measures rainfall and water levels in real-time to provide up-to-date flood information to aid first responders, issue flood warnings, and inform decision makers, the media, and the citizens of the region.[8] Houston's smart city initiatives include an analytics platform that monitors parking spot inventory in real time and a system that alerts residents during active emergencies.[3] Following Hurricane Harvey, the city realized it needed a more precise understanding of how the storm impacted residents and so embarked on the Harvey Data Project.[5]

Implementation Details

In May 2018, Houston and Microsoft forged a wide-ranging alliance that included plans for Microsoft to assist the city in finding technological solutions to other challenges under the umbrella of the company's smart city initiatives.[3] The city of Houston expanded its digital alliance with Microsoft in August 2020 to innovate in big data, artificial intelligence and the digital economy.[6] Through their joint efforts, Microsoft and the city of Houston work to advance civic innovation and smart city initiatives, economic development and recovery, and digital skilling for workforce and youth.[6] Microsoft and Houston are working with nearby Rice University to develop research into civic applications of IoT technologies.[3][4] Houston is considered a flagship city by partnering with Microsoft for the Microsoft Innovation Alliance initiative, and Verizon made Houston home to the first 5G implementation in the nation.[1] The Smart City Advisory Council is charged with engaging community stakeholders, governments, academia and industry to develop a roadmap that will speed the adoption of technology and data-driven practices in the public realm.[1] The Advisory Council was chaired by Elizabeth Brock, Director of External Engagement for CenterPoint Energy.[1] Marissa Aho was appointed as Chief Resilience Officer for the City of Houston.[1] The Smart City Advisory Council sought to align the roadmap to the Resilience Strategy the City was developing as a member of 100 Resilient Cities – pioneered by the Rockefeller Foundation.[1]

Benefits and Impacts

Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner said Thursday that the city's recovery from Hurricane Harvey has been an opportunity to become a globally competitive 'smart city' by putting more investments in cloud computing, public transportation and internet-connected environmental sensors.[4] CrisisReady is a research response platform based at Harvard that collaborates with global academic partners and tech companies and agencies to embed data-driven decision making into local and global disaster planning.[7]

Climate Adaptation Relevance

Hurricane Harvey dumped more than 1 trillion gallons of rain in September 2017 and flooded more than 96,000 houses in the city of Houston.[4] This implementation addresses extreme precipitation and flooding hazards by providing real-time monitoring capabilities and improved data integration for disaster response and recovery systems.

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