Google adds public alerts to Search, Now and Maps in Japan

When trouble looms, most people turn to the internet before anything else. As such, the search giant is ensuring that it's offering public alerts to those in disaster-prone regions. Following a rollout in the US last year, Google is also adding disaster warnings to its local versions of Search, Maps and Now -- using data from the Japan Meteorological Agency. At the same time, Google is teaming up with 14 Japanese prefectures and cities to make governmental data online during crises and that troubling period afterward.