These are the worst floods to have hit Jammu and Kashmir in more than a century and thanks to Google, it’s now a lot easier to find out about the people stranded in the floods. Google has launched a Person Finder tool, which is being pushed into service by the government. At its most basic, it’s a crowd-sourced searchable missing person database.

This tool was initially created by Google volunteers in response to the Haiti earthquake in January of 2010. It has since been used in earthquakes around the world. In India, it was first used during the Uttarakhand floods last year. The Kashmir version can be found here.

In addition to allowing people to post the details of, and search for, missing people, the web-based tool also allows press agencies, non-governmental agencies and others to contribute to the database and receive updates.

It is available both in English and Hindi, and for those who can't access computers, it is also available on mobile phones.

Twitter India has also gotten in on the act by setting up an automated SOS helpline.

 

You can track the hashtag #KashmirFloods for details of relief efforts, volunteer help, photos, videos and more from the affected areas.