Flood Sensor Project Sends Early Flood Warnings Based on Real-Time Monitoring

Published On: July 9, 2025

In a recent announcement, Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services (MCFRS) announced the county’s Flood Sensor Partnership, a collaborative effort between the county’s agencies in charge of emergency management, public safety, and storm event preparedness and response, as well as the federal Department of Homeland Security (DHS), to install 35 next-generation IoT flood sensors in the county’s flood-prone areas. Based on real-time monitoring, the flood sensors, which are produced by Intellisense, identify rising flood water levels during storm events and notify officials in advance of flooding. Below is more information according to Montgomery County:

Background: In response to changing climate conditions that are causing more frequent and intense storm events, the DHS Science and Technology Directorate collaborated with scientists, equipment manufacturers, and stormwater management programs across the United States to develop scalable, low-cost flood-sensor networks, which are now deployed in the County as part of this project. In Maryland, riverine and urban flooding is becoming a bigger problem. More urban and riverine flooding occurrences will result from the growing frequency of extreme rainfall events that deliver strong precipitation, and public safety measures will be under more pressure to lessen their effects. According to the 2017 National Climate Assessment, there has been a nationwide increase in heavy rainfall, particularly in the recent three to five decades. The Midwest and Northeast, notably the Mid-Atlantic, have seen the biggest rises.

Under a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA), DHS is giving the County free access to all 35 flood sensors, which require little upkeep. The County is in charge of sensor installation and maintenance, data accuracy analysis, and local usage pilots, including long-term operations and procedures.

What are the functions of flood sensors?The flood sensors are specifically designed to provide early alerts about floods or high water levels. They automatically detect rising water levels. By protecting vital infrastructure, minimizing property losses, and issuing flood alerts, warnings, and notifications, they will increase community resilience and get communities ready to react.

In what locations are the flood sensors installed?Beginning in June 2022, the flood sensors will be installed at 35 locations chosen by DEP and OEMHS, including 21 low-lying roadways and flood-prone neighborhoods, as well as 14 dams with high or major hazards. The County’s current operations, such as OEMHSs tracking and monitoring water levels at streams and rivers throughout the County using the US Geological Survey (USGS) gauges and DEPs remote monitoring stations that are a part of the current Dam Safety Operations, are enhanced and complemented by these real-time sensors.

Monitoring for Floods in Montgomery County: