One variation of a method for detecting and responding to hazards within a store includes: autonomously navigating toward an area of a floor of the store; recording a thermal image of the area; recording a depth map of the area of the floor; detecting a thermal gradient in the thermal image; scanning a region of the depth map, corresponding to the thermal gradient detected in the thermal image, for a height gradient; in response to detecting the thermal gradient in the thermal image and in response to detecting absence of a height gradient in the region of the depth map, predicting presence of a fluid within the area of the floor; and serving a prompt to remove the fluid from the area of the floor of the store to a computing device affiliated with the store.