FLOOD ALARM

VIA WATER
LEVEL
MONITORING
SYSTEM
WITH SMS
NOTIFICATION,
DATA LOGGING
AND
AUTOLOCATION
Baby Jean A. Madariaga
Mike-Justine B. Ida
Roberto A. Balla
Roger Angelo G. Lucas
 CHAPTER I

THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND

INTRODUCTION

Climate change due to global warming has caused an increase in

unpredictability of weather patterns in the world today. It is known that flood is one of

the natural disasters and most dangerous since they have enough destructive power to

change the course of rivers, sweep away and destroy whatever is in their path. Flood

occurs when water flows from the river, lake or from heavy rainfall and it can happen

at any time of the year. Flooding can be very dangerous when floods happen in an

area that people live, the water carries along objects like houses furniture and even

people. It can wipe away property, trees, and even heavy items.

By having an early flood alarm via water level monitoring system with SMS

notification, data logging and auto-location, users could take swift action and warn the

people such as evacuation so that cases of loss of lives could be minimized.

There are many features available in modern mobile phones now a day that

would satisfy users. Among the most popular applications in a mobile phone is Short

Messaging System (SMS). SMS text messaging is the most widely used data

application in the world. Based on this fact, SMS application can also be applied to

other form of information in order to help mankind. One of the ideas is to connect a

sensing system and send an alert or warning SMS indicating any mishaps to the user.

Often cases of flood disaster happened due to residents unaware of the sudden

increase of water level at their neighborhood. Alert system implemented currently is

via television and radio broadcasting to indicate which area is affected. However,

warnings might fail to those affected due to ineffective and late information in the
area. With the rapid development of technology, a sustainable and reliable monitoring

system is required to protect the community in any case of emergency.

Our motivation for this work is based on all damages caused in a particular

place that is being affected due to floods; this natural disaster has caused many people

to suffer damage to their homes and losing their belongings.

It is hoped that this project would be beneficial to the community and would

act as a precautionary measure in case of flood disaster at any flood prone area. A

proper warning system like this must be implemented to notify people in the early

stage so that safety precautions can be taken to avoid any mishaps.

BACKGROUND OF THE PROJECT

Flood events are a part of nature which is caused by natural and human

activities such as heavy rainfall, coastal flooding, deforestation, poor farming, poor

water management, and population pressure. These causes the disasters which later on

may harm, if not, kill people especially if they are unaware of it beforehand.

Bongolan et.al (2010) stated that 80% of Metro Manila was covered in waters during

rainy seasons that in some parts were nearly two-meter-deep, considering that it is

compared to a normal August worth of rain which dumps on the city in 48 hours.

Flood forecasting and warning is a prerequisite for successful mitigation of

flood damage. Also, preventive measures should be taken to reduce possible adverse

effects of floods on aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems, such as water and soil

pollution. Its effectiveness depends on the level of preparedness and correct response.

The responsible authorities should provide timely and reliable flood warning, flood

forecasting and information (The Association of State Floodplain Managers, 2013).

 Flood alarms are often used by people in detecting the level of water during

rainy seasoning. Most of the flood alarms available in the market commend high price

and complex usage. To address such problem with the lack of an early warning device

for floods in the community, this project that is being proposed is to create an early

flood alarm that is cheaper and effective compared to the commercially introduced.

The main consideration is the simplicity of the device wherein anyone can simply use

and manipulate it.

THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

A local flood warning system typically serves a small community situated in

headwater area and exposed to flash floods or rapid riverine floods. Forecasts of such

flood events are characterized by short lead times and large uncertainties. A Bayesian

theory is formulated for a local flood warning system built of functional components

like monitor, forecaster, and decider. The theory offers modeling framework concepts

necessary for developing optimal decision rules for issuing warnings based on

imperfect forecasts, evaluating system performance statistically and computing the

ex-ante (Gunnar Myrdal, 1927-39) which is also termed as ‘wants of people’ that

benefits from a system.

According to Zheng’s (2012) study, monitoring flood using water level sensor

reliable early flood warning, real-time monitoring of flood development, and fast

accurate assessment to flood losses are needed to effectively design a flood

monitoring system or device.

 PARADIGM OF THE PROJECT

Figure 1.

INPUT CONTROL OUTPUT

 3 Water  Buzzer
Level Float
Switches Arduino  SMS
 SMS Mega Notification
Command 2560
 SD Card R3
Containing  Map
GPS
Coordinates
Arduino  LCD
of Device Sensor Shield Display
 Real Time
Clock

Figure 1. which is shown in above figure is a combination of Arduino Mega 2560 R3,

Arduino Sensor Shield, 3 Water Level Float Switches, Buzzer, SD Card Containing

GPS Coordinates of Device, Real Time Clock, LCD Display with SMS Command,

SMS Notification, and Map. The Arduino Mega 2560 R3 is the heart of the device.

All the components used are all connected to Arduino Sensor Shield. The water level

sensor will measure the water level and give it to Arduino board and when it reaches

the critical level the buzzer will emit sound. The SMS Command will send a message

to the Arduino board and an SMS Notification received. The SD card containing GPS

coordinates of device will send a location to the Arduino board then the Arduino

board will send a Map link into a registered user. The real time clock will give an

accurate date and time that will be send to the Arduino board and the LCD will

display the current level of the water.

OBJECTIVES

The main objective of this project is to develop and design a flood alarm via

water level monitoring system with SMS notification, data logging and auto-location

to warn the concerned officials like Barangay Captain, Police head officers, and

Disaster risk management officers. Furthermore, this study aims:

1. Design a flood alarm via water level monitoring system with SMS

notification, data logging and auto-location.

2. Develop flood alert in every level using the Buzzer with a warning

message (SMS) with an auto-location (map link) to the users that will

display in LCD.

3. Design and develop a circuit and create a programming code using the

microcontroller.

4. Compare the created device to commercially available flood alarm

through:

a) Effectiveness

b) Efficiency

c) Portability

d) Accuracy

e) Reliability

5. Determine the performance of created device through the different criteria:

effectiveness, efficiency, portability, accuracy, reliability.

HYPOTHESES

The compared machine has no significant difference on performance variable

specifically:
 a. There was no significant difference on the effectiveness of the two

machines.

b. There was no significant difference on the efficiency of the two machines.

c. There was no significant difference on the portability of the two machines.

d. There was no significant difference on the accuracy of the two machines.

e. There was no significant difference on the reliability of the two machines.

SCOPE AND LIMITATIONS

IMPORTANCE OF THE PROJECT

This project will be undertaken to find out the flood level and also to inform

and warn the residents living near the river. In this project, it is just to know the water

level using this machine and to help the community benefiting this project in various

sectors as follows:

Future Researcher: The project helps future researchers to extend and develop their

knowledge about this project and also to provide more ideas and research to build a

good device that can monitor the flood.

Residents: This project contributes to the community to give awareness, to give early

warning and solution during the flood, to lessen the casualties and damage to the

community and help people to evacuate immediately. They should know the level of

the flood. It can communicate via SMS with the coordination of the Barangay

Captain, Police and Disasters risk management.

DEFINITION OF TERMS

To assist the understanding of this study, the following terms are defined, unless

otherwise indicated:

Flood - A large amount of water covers an area which is usually dry.

Disaster - A serious disruption of the functioning of a community or a society

involving widespread human, material, economic or environmental losses and

impacts, which exceeds the ability of the affected community or society to cope using

its own resources.

Early Warning Systems - The set of capacities needed to generate and disseminate

timely and meaningful warning information to enable individuals, communities and

organizations threatened by a hazard to prepare and to act appropriately and in

sufficient time to reduce the possibility of harm or loss.

Disaster risk management - The systematic process of using administrative

directives, organizations, and operational skills and capacities to implement strategies,

policies and improved coping capacities in order to lessen the adverse impacts of

hazards and the possibility of disaster.

Flood Warning - is a way of detecting threatening events in advance. This enables

the public to be warned so that actions can be taken to reduce the adverse effects of

the event. As such, the primary objective of a flood warning system is to reduce

exposure to coastal flooding.

Prevention - The outright avoidance of adverse impacts of hazards and related

disasters.
 CHAPTER II

REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

In most places, rainfall is likely occur irregularly and in widely different

amounts from one-time to another. As a result, the steams which carry the surface run

off fluctuate greatly in the amount of water they carry. Thus, flood can be expected to

occur at intervals as a normal part of the cycle (Ramsey and Bucckley, 1996).

McDaniel (2012) stated that floods are the second-most widespread natural

disaster on the Earth. It happens when water overflows or soaks land that is normally

dry. There are few places on Earth where people don’t need to be concerned about

flooding. Generally, floods take hour or even days to develop, giving residents time to

prepare or evacuate. Sometimes, flood develop quickly and with little warning.

Flooding may result from the volume of water within a body of water, such as

a river or lake, which overflows or breaks levees, with the result that some of the

water escapes its usual boundaries, or may be due to accumulation of rainwater on

saturated ground in an area flood. It can also arise from abnormal heavy precipitation,

dam failures, rapid snow melts, river blockages (Mwape, 2009).

Early Warning Systems

As defined by the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction, early

warning system “is the set of capacities needed to generate and disseminate timely

warning information to enable individuals, communities and organizations threatened

by a hazard to prepare and to act appropriately and in sufficient time”. Through

advancement in science and technology, these early warning systems have improved

drastically in every aspect over time.

Early warning systems have been considered a fundamental part of disaster

preparedness (Pearson 2012). In Cuba, its Tropical Cyclone Early Warning System is
attributed to decreasing deaths significantly for weather related disasters such as

tropical cyclones, storm surges and related flooding. In fact, five successive flooding

events left only seven casualties.

Development of Flood Alert or Warning System

Flood are a natural process that can be due to a number of factors and is

affected by human activities. Sudden heavy and intense precipitation can cause floods

to quickly rise in minutes or hours followed by flash floods, and are typically

associated with small catchment areas. In large catchment areas, rainfall can build up

over hours, days or weeks. Many factors contribute to floods however, the main cause

of floods is rainfall.

Early flood warning systems according to Grust (2008) are essential for the

protection of the population against flood hazards as it allows people to get prepared.

However, early flood warning system will not prevent flooding. According to Perez

et.al (2007), it is a community-based flood warning system that can be used for

disaster mitigation and disaster preparedness of the community because it provides an

early flood monitoring and warning services.

Usage of Flood Alarm Systems

Among all-natural disasters in world, flooding constitutes the most costly and

prevalent. Simonovic (2012) opined that there are a lot of strategies and methods now

a days used in addressing flood hazards and disasters. Alarm Systems or Flood

Warning System (FWS) have been introduces in many countries to minimize life and

chattel losses by warning people in flood prone areas to evacuate and protect their

property, albeit some damage still occurs (Goodwin, 2012).

Molino (2002) stated that sirens are designed to provide a very rapid alert to

potentially threatened populations. They are currently the only reliable means of
alerting outdoor populations. Some sirens are used in making an effective FWS.

Organizations and individuals are given notice by the system so they can protect

themselves and their property.

The consequences of floods, both negative and positive, vary greatly

depending on the location and scope of flooding, and the susceptibility and value of

the natural and constructed environments they affect. Floods can also traumatize

victims and their families for long periods of time. The loss of loved ones has deep

impacts, especially on children. Displacement from one's home, loss of property and

disruption to business and social affairs can cause continuing stress. For some people

the psychological impacts can be long lasting.

Community-based Early Warning Systems (CBEWS)

This is a “people-centered” system and empowers individuals and

communities threatened by hazard to act on sufficient time and in an appropriate

manner to reduce the possibility of personal injury, loss of life, damage to property,

environment and loss of livelihood. These things lead to the development of the

device necessary for the protection of the community against flood hazards as it

allows people to get prepared with sufficient time.

An alarm system was developed to monitor the water level on Salog River that

over flows during heavy rains. The water level sensors were submerged in a canal of

water to test the functionality of the device before its installation. Computer programs

were created to enhance the monitoring of water level: The River Monitor Software

and the Water Level Monitor. The LED arrays emit light according to water level;

green for low, orange for medium, and red for high. A siren also alarms with different

intervals. Levels were established based on an available data; low water level means
awareness; medium water level means preparedness; and high-water level means

immediate response is necessary.

Flood Water Monitoring System

Flood Water Monitor was done to develop an early warning system in case of

flood occurrence. The research’s target is to establish this device as a sort of home

security system that can be used not only by a single household but by small

communities as well.

The device is designed to update its users regarding flood water level and

warns them when the water has reached a certain threshold. The project uses Arduino

Board and GSM/GPRS Module in order to execute the aforementioned SMS Alert

feature. The number of phone numbers that can be integrated into the program and

where the alert messages can be sent into is only limited, so the project also has a

buzzer and matrix of light-emitting diodes to serve as alarm and indicator,

respectively.

Automatic Floods Alerting System Using GSM& PC

Flood warnings are a highly important adaptive measure where protection

through large scale, hard defenses, is not desirable or possible. This may be the case if

defenses would cause adverse environmental or social problems, or where the cost of

defense construction would be prohibitive. The project is to provide the sensor

automatic Flood alerting system. Monitoring of water level, rain flow checking and

Water flow velocity by the sensors. River water level and rain flow and water velocity

status is monitored by the sensors and transfer to GSM and Computer. For easy

surveying and with less delay the information can be send to the authority. To avoid

flood-based accident and to safeguard the people.

Flood Detector System Using Arduino

For years, flooded roads have been a problem in Metro Manila. It causes

heavy flow of traffic. Both motorists and commuters are getting stuck in a flooded

area and getting lost in finding possible routes just to go to their destinations. Through

the local government unit flood control has been extending their efforts to inform the

commuters regarding the situation in flooded areas during rainy season, still the

dissemination of information to the locals are not enough. For this reason, the

“Arduino Flood Detector System” is been develop, to help the road user to avoid this

problem happened. It was invented based on problem faced by motorists and

commuters when flood occurred. The system will function when the admin activates

the system and when water along the road detected by distance over ultrasonic sensor.

When the flood occurs, the ultrasonic sensor will be sent signal to the microprocessor

circuit and the sense water level will be display in the user interface and it will

automatically send a Short Message Service (SMS) to those recognized residents and

it will continue update until the water level detected returns to normal. The process

repeats as the water level continuous to rise. The idea of an SMS based warning

system was proposed because mobile phones have become a popular communication

device among people all over the world. All mobile phone is able to communicate

because it comprises of a GSM. This system used to detect the current water level of

flood around the road and will give real-time information to the motorists or

commuters that has still not passing through the flooded areas to avoid problem.

Flood Monitoring and Early Warning System Using Ultrasonic Sensor

Most of the technology that is being developed commonly apply in weather

forecasting, flood detection and monitoring system using sensing devices, modeling

software, Internet and mobile technology. However, these systems are usually for
one-way communication only. In order to get an update or latest information, local

communities need to access the website. And in accessing this website, it requires

computer or smart phone that has an Internet feature, and most individual could

hardly afford to purchase one.

The City of Ilagan is located at the central portion in the province of Isabela. It

is the River Basin of its neighboring towns particularly in the southern portion of the

province. Floods caused by these rivers flow down very slowly because of surface

retention over the extensive flood plain, extremely gentle slope, retardation of flood

by several gorges and river meander.

This is more localized to help the communities affected by flood in the

province of Isabela particularly in the northern area by providing an interactive and

real-time information on the current water level in the two majors portion of the

province. This project also widens the coverage of people that can receive the

information to improve the emergency measures during floods. Furthermore, this

study builds a prototype that detects the current water level across the watershed of

Cagayan River and its surrounding areas through ultrasonic sensors. The geographical

area was subdivided into two, where monitoring devices were installed. Specifically,

the objectives of this study are to create a flood monitoring system that monitor the

water level of the rivers using ultrasonic sensors and to design and develop an early

warning system.

The two monitoring devices are composed of Ultrasonic sensor to measure the

distance of the water level, Arduino micro-controller that process the signal from the

sensor, GSM module to send the data or information from the micro-controller to the

computer server and a power source using Solar Panel, Regulator and Battery. Once a

sensor is triggered, an output signal will be relayed to the micro-controller which

serves as a switch that triggers the connected GSM module to send an alert message

or water level status to another GSM modem connected to a computer server. Then,

the developed program installed in the computer server will interpret and analyze the

message received then automatically send a text message to the concern agencies’

numbers stored in a database. Also, the developed program will then automatically

relay the alert message or status by uploading to the developed website. Furthermore,

concern agencies, local officials and the local communities could inquire about the

current status by sending a message that contains keywords.

SYNTHESIS

This project dealt with the flood alarm via water level monitoring system with

SMS notification, data logging and auto-location, wherein the review of related

literature has similarity with the purpose of having an early warning system as defined

by the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction to generate and disseminate

timely warning information to enable individuals, communities and organizations

threatened by a hazard to prepare and to act appropriately and in sufficient time.

According to Pearson (2012), early warning system have been considered a

fundamental part of disaster preparedness.

According to Grust (2008) are essential for the protection of the population

against flood hazards as it allows people to get prepared.

According to Perez et.al (2007), it is a community-based flood warning system

that can be used for disaster mitigation and disaster preparedness of the community

because it provides an early flood monitoring and warning services.

 CHAPTER III

METHODOLGY

This chapter deals the methodology of the project, which includes the

description of the design, population, sampling method, the respondents of the study,

the locale, the instrument used, data collection technique and statistical treatment used

in study.

PROJECT DESIGN

According to Taylor (2013), in experimental designs, the researchers do not

exist as observers anymore but as experimenters that randomize trials and compare

treatments. Thus, the researchers classified this study as an experimental research that

identified the best and most suitable design for flood alarm via water level monitoring

system with SMS notification, data logging and auto-location. This was an

experimental research for the purpose of testing the effectiveness (with respect to the

water level reading) – the floating water sensor.

On the other hand, applied research was also adapted for this research to

designed and solve a specific problem. This phase involves refining the solution to be

effective, safe and appealing and that can be manufactured in a timely and cost-

effective way.

LOCALE OF THE PROJECT

This project will be conducted at Purok 1 of Barangay Compamia, Tumaini,

Isabela.

SELECTION OF DESCRIPTION OF THE RESPONDENTS

The respondents are the residents of Purok 1 of Barangay Compamia,

Tumauini, Isabela. The respondents were composed of twenty (20); both male and
female. The researcher chooses them as their respondent because they are related to

their project.

DATA GATHERING PROCEDURE

The researcher will seek approval from the concerned government like the

Municipal Disaster Risk Reduction Management Council, Head of Police and the

Barangay Captain of Barangay Compamia. Random people will also be asked to

answer the survey interviews questions upon their approval.

Researchers will be conducting interviews to random people, and different

officials who work in agencies related to the project to check the significance of the

study. The data which will be collected during the said process will help them to

evaluate the specific opinions and ideas of the people related to the topic in order to

make appropriate generalizations.

DATA GATHERING INSTRUMENT

The proponents formulated survey interview questions for data gathering.

These tools would help the researcher to acquire data that will be used in the study.

The researchers would be visiting the officials like (Barangay Captain and the

head of the Police department), government agency (like MDRRMC) of Barangay

Compania, Tumauini, Isabela and would be conducting series of interviews based on

the needed information to be collected. Schedule for interviews would be varying

according to the response of the professionals or officials who are in-charge with

issues like risk reduction, flood and other natural calamities. Interviews will be

recorded in proper recording equipment. The conducted interviews, authorized by the

respondents, will serve as legal references for the researchers.

 All these data collecting was solely used for the purpose of the project.

STATISTICAL TREATMENT

The following statistical treatment will used to treat the data:

Percentage. The statistical treatment of data used to determine the percentage of

acquiring the most common criteria was the percentage formula, as shown below.

Formula: where:
P=f/n * 100 p = percentage
f = frequency
n = total of respondents

T-test of two-sample assuming unequal variances. The statistical treatment of data

used to test if the null hypotheses of each performance variable will be rejected.

Weighted Mean. The statistical treatment of data used to determine the percentage of

acquiring the most chosen criteria was weighted mean formula, as shown below.

Formula: where:

WM = (5)f+(4)f+(3)f+(2)f+(1)f WM= Weighted Mean

n f= frequency
n= number of respondents

The weighted mean was interpreted using a 5-point scale in Created Device

Arbitrary Value Numerical Value Descriptive Scale

5 4.20 - 5.00 Highly Acceptable

4 3.40 – 4.19 Acceptable

3 2.60 – 3.39 Fair

2 1.80 – 2.59 Unacceptable

1 1.00 – 1.79 Poorly Acceptable