Google Person Finder activated for Uttarakhand flood victims

Monsoon and the subsequent floods have wreaked havoc in Uttarakhand – a state in North India. Even as you’re reading this, news headlines are rife with reports about casualties and missing people. It is in this scenario that Google has launched its Person Finder tool, which it believes can aid in finding those who’ve been untraceable. This tool is now open to all and is available in both Hindi and English. 

Google Person Finder tool

The web application has two parts – "I’m looking for someone" and "I have information about someone" – both of which are self-explanatory. Upon clicking “I’m looking for someone” option, the user will be prompted to enter either the name or parts of the name of the person they’re looking for. If there is any entry about the person, then it will show up. If a user has any information about someone, then he or she will be prompted to enter the person's first name and his or her family name.

Jayanth Mysore, Senior Product Manager, Google APAC and the Google Crisis Response team, reveals that all data entered into the Person Finder tool is available to the public and is accessible by anyone. In addition to accessing data, the tool also allows press agencies, non-governmental agencies and others contribute to the database and receive updates by using the Person Finder API based on the PFIF open standard.

Previously, Google had activated its Person Finder tool in the aftermath of the Boston blasts last year. The helpful tool was first activated during the Haiti earthquake in 2010.

Then in 2011, when Japan was hit by a massive earthquake measuring 8.8 on the Richter scale, Google had activated its tool to help frantic users get details about their missing relatives and friends.