As a way to help Filipinos become more prepared for rain-induced disasters and other calamities, Voyager, a subsidiary of Smart Communications, Inc., recently introduced a free Android app called RaincheckPH.
According to Voyager’s Chief Operating Officer Benjie Fernandez, RaincheckPH helps Filipinos develop a culture of preparedness for any type of natural calamity by making its users aware of oncoming rain within their vicinity.
Covering nearly 70 cities around the country, RaincheckPH alerts users through pop-up notifications when the probability of rain in their current location reaches 50% within the next four hours. Users can also get real-time data on temperature, weather conditions, the amount of rain, wind speeds and a full four-day forecast.
Voyager claims that the app can predict the probability of rain down to city level within a four-hour period with 95% accuracy. The data that the app uses comes from the Department of Science and Technology’s (DOST) Project NOAH (Nationwide Operational Assessment of Hazards).
A social media sharing feature has also been built into RaincheckPH to enable users to post weather updates on their Twitter and Facebook accounts.
Voyager claims that it is working on a crowdsourcing facility within the app where users can report flooded roads and other disaster situations within their respective areas.