Summary
Google's earthquake early warning system did not effectively alert people during the February 2023 Turkey earthquakes. Instead of notifying millions with a high-level warning to seek safety, only a few hundred received it, while others got a lesser alert. Google later acknowledged flaws in the system and made improvements.
Key Facts
- Google's warning system failed to properly alert 10 million people during the Turkey earthquake in February 2023.
- Only 469 high-alert messages were sent for the first earthquake, which was a 7.8 magnitude.
- Half a million lower-level "light shaking" alerts were sent to users.
- More than 55,000 people died, and 100,000 were injured in the earthquakes.
- The system uses data from Android phones, detecting shaking through sensors.
- Improvements were made after researchers found the system underestimated the earthquake's strength.
- Google emphasized that its system is meant to support, not replace, national warning systems.
- The system's limitations were acknowledged by researchers, who have since updated the algorithm to better identify serious shaking.
