Rebecca Hersher

And people in riverside communities like Praktush, they get warnings now and they get them via voicemail.

No, it's literally like a normal voicemail.

But the message is a flood warning, not like a fun message from your friend.

And then it gives directions about how to evacuate.

Anyone in the country can opt in to getting these warnings.

You can also sign up to get text warnings on the popular messaging app Telegram.

I had the same question.

I was like, okay, voicemail.

Like, great.

But people really seem to take these warnings seriously.

Like, before that terrible November flood hit Praktush...

Klee Polly got a voicemail warning on her phone.

And she says in the past, they might have sheltered in their homes when the water was rising and just hoped that the water wouldn't get too high.

But now that they get these warnings, no one stays.

She explains, when we heard the announcement, we took our children to the safe house.

And that's like a government-run evacuation site up the road.

Yeah.

They actually also evacuated.

So the village chief hooked his phone up to his car speaker and drove it through town, broadcasting the message on repeat.

He does that every time there's a warning.