Over the course of 2020, 4 new weather stations were erected in and around the Cypriot city of Larnaca that are meant to help officials better prepare for crises and floods. The new smart devices give authorities advanced warnings of dangerous changes in climate conditions and allow them to act quickly in order to prevent damages.

Smart solutions for eternal problems

The new devices were purchased by the municipality of Larnaca earlier this year and have been in operation since September. They are able to predict heavy rains and allow for authorities to have a faster response to potential floods giving the employees of the Larnaca Sewerage and Drainage Board around half an hour to react to swift changes in climate circumstances.

The four new stations complement the already established advances at Larnaca. For example, since October last year a new rainwater pumping station has been operational in the city near the Panagoulis and Kyprianos Avenues, which are especially prone to flooding problems during winter. The pumping station itself was purchased at a cost of around €1.3m.

The addition of the weather stations has made the job of authorities even easier in terms of handling flooding emergencies. But the municipality is not planning to stop there. According to the director of the Larnaca Sewerage and Drainage Board work has already begun on another massive permanent pumping station in the city – namely at Prodromou, a part of the city that is also routinely affected by bad weather in the winter.

Until the construction of the permanent station is complete, however, sometime in January, four temporary stations will be responsible for protecting the area from floods. With climate change making such crises worse and worse each year, it is up to cities and governments to implement technological solutions that can protect citizens and key infrastructure.