Ä¢¹½´«Ã½

This article’s commentary puts into perspective the challenges in communicating early warning messaging in the context of the 2021 Western Germany floods. The July 2021 Germany flood event highlighted the need for the world to be ready for the regular occurrence of extreme flood events in the future because of climate change. Flood Early Warning Systems (EWSs) should be matched with the empowerment of communities to adequately respond timeously to warnings. Furthermore, FEWS activities can further be strengthened through adopting multisectoral communication and multipronged pathways for effective early flood risk messaging.

Moreover, flood forecasters, disaster risk reduction (DRR) practitioners and policymakers can also utilise other complementary tools such as AI and remote sensing to enhance future predictions. Moreover, DRR authorities can also tap into the large audience reach that lies within social media platforms to enhance citizens’ flood awareness levels. There is always, however, need to guard against flood misinformation and the spread of fake news, particularly over social media platforms. In Germany, the low uptake of social media applications can be an opportunity to promote these as alternative sources of early warnings.