Singapore puts CCTV images online to monitor flash floods

SINGAPORE, March 29 (Xinhua) -- Singapore's water agency Public Utilities Board (PUB) is putting images of flood-prone areas online starting from Thursday and updating them every five minutes in a bid to help members of the public deal with flash floods.

The images of the 24 flood-prone areas and hotspots islandwide are captured through the closed-circuit television systems that have been put in place to monitor these areas.

Currently 65 CCTVs are installed at areas which are flood-prone or have recently experienced flash floods. The PUB said the 24 selected CCTVs are located at roads with higher traffic flow.

The images will help improve public preparedness as part of Singapore's overall flood management effort, it said.

"We have installed CCTVs at various locations to help us better monitor real-time site conditions during heavy rainstorms," said William Yeo, PUB's deputy director of catchment and waterways.

Yeo said the system enables the water agency to deploy manpower on site faster in the event of a flash flood and provide more timely updates to the public.

Singapore experienced several flash floods in recent years, including two that hit the shopping belt Orchard Road.

It has made efforts to prevent flash floods with measures including improving the drainage and sending updates about flash floods to members of the public through text messages.