In the footsteps of Water

One of the key lessons learned from the catastrophic floods that occurred on October 29, 2024, and caused 238 deaths in Spain, was the need to raise public awareness about flooding, both to improve prevention and to enhance emergency response (Llasat, 2024). In this vein, years ago the GAMA group at the University of Barcelona (UB) developed a free mobile app (FLOODUP) to be used as a citizen science tool, allowing the public to submit observations about floods—both in real time and from the past—as well as bad practices or risk mitigation measures (Llasat-Botija et al., 2025). The app also includes explanations to improve users’ flood risk awareness; it can be used anywhere in the world and is available in Spanish, Catalan, Basque, English, and French.

The “In the Footsteps of Water” project, led by the General Directorate of Water under the Ministry for Ecological Transition and Demographic Challenge, was launched in response to the 2024 floods with the aim of promoting civil society participation in improving understanding of flood risk. To this end, it was decided to use the FLOODUP app, which was adjusted for the project. The campaign, which is still ongoing, involves submitting photographs of historical floodwater marks, accompanied by information on their location, the height of the mark, and the event itself. It also includes questions about the flood risk perception of the citizen submitting the images. The campaign has developed educational materials, individual worksheets, and worksheets to promote group participation, which can be found at https://www.miteco.gob.es/es/agua/temas/gestion-de-los-riesgos-de-inundacion/cnih/tras-huellas-agua.html.

Participation in the project helps preserve historical memory and shows the citizens how high a flood can rise. At the same time, as regards its citizen science component, the project aims to incorporate the information gathered into the cartography of flood-prone areas.

 

Llasat, M.C., 2024. Spain’s flash floods reveal a desperate need for improved mitigation efforts. Nature, WORLD VIEW, 26 November 2024 Nature 635, 787 (2024). doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-024-03825-0.

Llasat-Botija, M., L. Esbrí, T. Rigo, M.C. Llasat, 2025. The Application of Citizen Science to Evaluate the Emergency and the Response of the Population in the October 2019 Flash Flood Event in the Francolí River (NE Spain). Water 2025, 17, 610. https://doi.org/10.3390/w17050610