Mapping resources for the Red River Floods
March 31st, 2009 | Published in Google Earth
As the news began to spread of the Red River's record-setting crest level, the first order of the day was to help get the word out to as many as possible. This was especially true in Fargo, North Dakota's most populus city, with 92,000 residents living in the vicinity of the Red River. For many Fargoans, the need for timely, flood-related geographical information, including shelter locations, evacuated neighborhoods, and official news was paramount. Radio Fargo-Moorehead, owners of several of Fargo's TV and radio stations, worked to develop a My Map that was embedded across its network of Fargo-area station websites, including: KFGO.com, BOB95FM.com, ROCK102online.com, MOJO104.com, Y94.com, and 740thefan.com.
Through the collaborative editing properties of My Map, this map was jointly kept updated over the course of the flood, the changes being instantly reflected on the Radio-Fargo station websites. After only 72 hours, the number of map visits from Fargoans, Moorheaders, and others from across the country exceeded 250,000. These resources will continue to evolve as this situation continues to change.
View the KFGO Fargo MyMap
We have also published a Google Earth Layer (kmz) with more GIS-related information for the flood response. This layer will be updated with additional data, including imagery, as it becomes available. To view the layer in Google Earth, download the KML file found here.