TOMSK, Feb 12 – RIA Tomsk. Scientists of Tomsk State University (TSU) held a workshop in Laos on the use of their "Pavodok" ("Freshet") application to monitor water levels under flood threat, the development will help local authorities reduce the number of casualties during seasonal floods, the university’s press service said on Wednesday.
It is noted that each year in August-September, due to heavy rainfall, the main river of Laos - the Mekong - leaves the banks, in some places the water level can reach 18 meters. Almost every year this leads to dozens of victims, many people are left homeless. This creates a demand for developments for hydrological modeling in Southeast Asia.
According to the press service, the "Pavodok" ("Freshet") application of TSU Geoportal for monitoring the flood situation was presented to employees of the Ministry of Natural Resources and Ecology of Laos and National University of Laos during their visit to Tomsk two years ago.
"The application analyzes the data received from gauging stations located near settlements, and online makes a forecast indicating the territories that will be at risk of flooding", - the associate professor of the TSU Faculty of Geology and Geography Vadim Khromykh is quoted.
“TSU scientists held a master class with role-playing elements for their Laotian colleagues, where they modeled the process of monitoring water resources using the example of three river basins of the large tributaries of the Mekong ... With the head of the Ministry Sommad Folsena (university staff) discussed further areas of cooperation. As a result, a memorandum on cooperation with TSU was prepared", - the press service reports.
It was previously reported that in 2016 TSU signed a memorandum of understanding with the Ministry of Science and Technology of Laos, which implies the creation of a university research station in Laos, with the help of which scientists can study the climate and nature of this country.