Categories: Technology

Google launches Person Finder in Turkey following 7.2 magnitude earthquake

The search for survivors continues

As rescuers continue to search for survivors following a 7.2 magnitude earthquake that hit Turkey’s eastern Van region yesterday, Google has launched Person Finder there to aid the search for survivors.

Person Finder allows individuals to create records for missing persons following natural disasters, or check the status of persons already on the database in the hope that they have been found alive. Any individual or organisation can update the database as they please.

Person Finder is currently tracking 2,500 reports of missing persons in Turkey following the earthquake. At this early stage some 265 people have been confirmed dead and over 1,140 injured. The death toll is expected to rise.

Google engineers first built Person Finder in January 2010 in response to the Haiti earthquake. Since then, the service has been deployed in Christchurch following the earthquake there in September 2010, and to Japan in March 2011 following the disaster created by the earthquake and tsunami.

Person Finder has to date witnessed 669,200 missing persons records in all four recent natural disasters.

Albizu Garcia

Albizu Garcia is the Co-Founder and CEO of Gain -- a marketing technology company that automates the social media and content publishing workflow for agencies and social media managers, their clients and anyone working in teams.

Recent Posts

Gates-funded World Bank project seeks to connect digital ID with fast payment systems

The public-private financial revolution requires every person to have a digital identity, so they can…

4 hours ago

Tony Colon to keynote Articulate conference alongside industry execs, share best practices for leading in an AI-first future

At the outset of 2025, digital workflow platform ServiceNow revealed plans to hire up to…

3 days ago

Digital ID, face scans for age verification are becoming internet passports

Online age checks are not just about children; they're about getting everybody onboard with digital…

3 days ago

15 startup conferences that are actually worth attending in 2025

Big-name expos and star-studded keynotes may grab headlines, but in 2025, it’s the smaller, more…

4 days ago

US wants digital ID for patients, providers & payers

Trump says the system will be 'entirely opt-in,' but HHS is looking to encourage, require…

2 weeks ago

Why a proactive approach to threat exposure pays dividends 

Over the past year, not only has the frequency of cyberattacks skyrocketed across all industries…

2 weeks ago