The INLINE project officially started

The European project INLINE—Integrated pan-European rainfall and floods Impact forecasts for cooperation in Emergency Management—was officially launched on 01 March 2025, and will run until 28 February 2027. Funded by the Union Civil Protection Mechanism (UCPM) under the ‘Knowledge for Action in Prevention and Preparedness’ (KAPP) call for proposals 2024, the project seeks to enhance the capabilities of early warning systems over Europe. By integrating tools to anticipate the impacts of storms, heavy rainfall and floods, INLINE aims to support the decision-making processes of civil protection authorities at different levels, from local to European, including their coordination and cooperation during cross-border emergency management.

Building on the results of previous European projects, the INLINE developments are a further step towards the full integration of storm and flood impact forecasts into operational decision-making. These developments will be demonstrated in real-time over a 15-month period, with the participation of end-users across Europe and in a cross-border pilot site in Portugal and Spain.

Coordinated by the Center of Applied Research in Hydrometeorology – Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, INLINE brings together eight partners from three European countries: the European Centre for Medium-Range Weather Forecasts, the Finnish Meteorological Institute, the Spanish State Agency of Meteorology, the Portuguese Institute for Sea and Atmosphere, the Environment and Water Agency of Andalusia, the Directorate-General for Civil Protection and Emergencies of Spain, and the National Authority for Emergency and Civil Protection of Portugal.

INLINE held its first project meeting on 11-12 March 2025 at the Brussels office of the Spanish Research Civil Council. The partners participated in the meeting for two days planning the first steps of the project on the development, demonstration and evaluation of improved functionalities supporting the management of emergencies triggered by storms, heavy rain and flash flood.

On the second day, a session was held with the Analytical Team of the EC Directorate-General for European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations (DG ECHO) at the Emergency Response Coordination Centre (ERCC) headquarters to explore how INLINE developments can support their operations.

On 13 March, the coordination team represented INLINE at the kick-off meeting of the UCPM KAPP call, also hosted at the ERCC. In the meeting, the call managers provided practical, financial and legal information, the coordinators presented the funded projects and there was time to discuss with the assigned Project and Technical Desk Officers.