Hundreds of gauges are situated near streams and rivers across North Carolina to provide real-time data on stream elevation, rainfall and weather parameters – and now municipalities can “adopt” these gauges, in similar fashion to the well-known “Adopt-A-Highway program. These gauges, which are operated by N.C. Emergency Management (NCEM), local government agencies, private organizations and the U.S. Geological Survey, all feed information into the Flood Inundation Mapping and Alert Network (FIMAN). Gauge data is also provided to the National Weather Service to aid in their rain and flood forecasts.