From Alerts to Action: Designing Crisis Apps that Enable Self-Help in Storm-Flood Events

Abstract

This paper explores the design of mobile emergency applications to enhance citizen self-help during storm flood events, addressing critical gaps in current warning systems. Through a comprehensive literature review and the application of the design science research paradigm, we identify 13 socio-technical issues, such as low user motivation, mistrust, information overload, and fragmented community support. We formulated twelve meta-requirements and derived eight actionable design principles. Based on these findings, we developed a prototype and evaluated it through qualitative walk-throughs with ten citizens. Our findings indicate high usability, trust, and perceived helpfulness, validating the layered, credibility-centered, and community-aware approach. The findings suggest that effective storm-flood apps should incorporate straightforward navigation, action-linked alerts, visual hazard communication, step-by-step guidance, and neighborhood networks. This work extends existing crisis communication guidelines, offering practical insights for designing citizen-empowering emergency tools that align with the Sustainable Development Goals for resilient urban communities.