Abstract: This paper presents the strategy and operational tools developed and implemented at the Euro-Mediterranean Seismological Centre (EMSC) to detect and diagnose the impact of global earthquakes within minutes by combining « flashsourcing » (real time monitoring of website traffic) with social media monitoring and crowdsourcing.
This approach serves both the seismological community and the public and can contribute to improved earthquake response. It collects seismological observations, improves situation awareness from a few tens of seconds to a couple of hours after earthquake occurrence and is the basis of innovative targeted real time public information services.
We also show that graphical input methods can improve crowdsourcing tools both for the increasing use of mobile devices and to erase language barriers. Finally we show how social network harvesting could provide information on indirect earthquake effects such as triggered landslides and fires, which are difficult to predict and monitor through existing geophysical networks.