JessStimson

NRS509

UsingGISinNaturalDisasterManagement

Naturaldisastersaresuddenunexpectedeventsthatcauseenvironmental,financialand
humanloss.Theseeventsincludeavalanches,blizzards,drought,earthquakes,extremeheator
cold,hurricanes,landslides,tornadoes,volcanoeruptions,andwildfires.Theirdetrimental
effectscanbethwartedorminimizedifthepublicissufficientlyprepared.Geographic
InformationSystems(GIS)offervaluablespatialdatatoemergencymanagementresponseunits
duringandfollowingnaturaldisasters.
GISisavaluabletoolinaddressingnaturaldisastermanagementprocesses.Theprogram
isdesignedtoprovidesuccinct,uptodateinformationparticularlytomanagersandfirst
respondersintheirassessmentofthenaturaldisaster,atanystage.Emergencyresponse
professionalscancombineroad,populationandlanddataintoaclearmapformatpriortoa
naturaldisaster.Theeventsmaybenaturalbutrebuildingafterthewakeofdestruction
becomestheresponsibilityofthevictims.GIScanalleviatesomeofthesurpriseandfear
associatedwithsuddennaturaldisastersbycombiningtodaystechnologywithemergency
managementknowledge.Sincethereareoftenseveralagenciesororganizationsworking
togetherduringemergencies,usingGISallowstrainedresponderstoquicklyuploadandshare
informationbetweencommandcentersacrosstownoracrosstheworld.Whenadisasterhits,
timemeanslives.Havingaccesstovaluableinformationinstantlyiswhatwillprovidethebasis
forfutureGISprocesses.
Emergencymanagementhasthreemainobjectivesprotectinglife,propertyandthe
environment(Johnson,2000).GIScanbeaninvaluableresourceinmeetingthese
requirementsthroughtheemergencymanagementcyclethatincludesplanning,mitigation,
preparedness,responseandrecoverystages.Eachofthephasesoverlaponeanotherandusing
GIS,priortoanaturaldisaster,toanalyzespatialdatacreatesabroadframeworkfor
emergencymanagers.
Intheplanningstage,GIScanbeusedtoidentifyfuturehazardsintheeventofanatural
disastersuchasapotentialfloodzone.Withthisinformation,therestoftheemergency
planningprocesscanbegintosolidify.Areasthatarehighlyvulnerableduringanemergency
canbeidentifiedthroughGISdataandpropermitigationproceedingscantakeplacetoensure
safety.
Mitigationreferstothephasewhenactionsaretakentoavoidorreducethelikelihoodof
anaturaldisaster.Thismayincludeimplementingmanagementplansinvulnerableareas,such
asbuildingrestrictionsinareaspronetofloods.Locationsthatareparticularlysusceptibleto
naturaldisastersmayexecutemorecomprehensiveplanstoavoiddetrimentaleffectsfrom
unavoidableevents.
Preparationisavitalpartofemergencymanagement;GIScanprovideinformationthatis
valuableduringrealemergencies.Severalwhatif?questionscanbeansweredthrough
preparednesstraininglikewhathomeownersshoulddointheeventofafloodorhow
vulnerablearetheytorisingwaters.WhenresponderscompleteGIStrainingsessions,response
timeswillincreaseandsecondguessingshouldbeeliminated.Havingcapableemergency

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responseteamspreparedpriortoaneventwillminimizeconfusionduringanactualcrisis
situation.
Followinganaturaldisaster,responseteamsonlyhaveashorttimetoreact.Quick
reactiontimesareimperativefornaturaldisastermanagement.Responderswillbeableto
determinethequickestwaytotheirdestinationaccordingtorouteidentifiedintheplanning
stagespriortoafloodusingGISTIGER(road)data.Ifadditionalsupportisneeded,GIScan
providelocationinformationtothenewarrivals.GIScanassistinnaturaldisasterseverity
assessment.Thisvaluableinformationdeterminesthetypeofrecoveryeffortsneeded.
Recoveryisanextremelyimportantphase.Afteranaturaldisaster,thepublicsafetyisa
primaryconcernandthegoalbecomesrestoringtheimpactedareasbacktonormal.Thiscan
eitherbeashorttermrecoveryprocess,whichsimplyinvolvesreturningvitalneedsoritmay
bealongtermrecoverycommitmentthatcantakeseveralyears,insomecircumstances.GIS
datacanbeusedinthiscapacitytoidentifythevitalareasthatrequireimmediaterepairin
ordertorestoresomenormalcytothearea.Theextentandgravityofadisasterwilldictatethe
recoveryefforts.GIScanlikelynevereliminatethethreatoftheseeventsbuthighriskareas
maybebetterpreparedforifandwheneventsdooccur(Johnson,2000).
DespitethenotedadvantagesofutilizingGISduringanaturaldisaster,therearealso
limitations.Theseincludethepossibilityofinsufficientdata,lackoforganization,difficulty
recognizingdeficienciesinmodels,problemswithsoftwareandtheinabilitytorecognizeneeds
ofendusers(Cova,1999).Thedeficienciesinthesystemmayberectifiedwithfurther
investmentinthepreparationprocess.Managementprofessionalsneedtomaximizethe
capabilitiesoftheprogramwithadditionaltrainingandresearchconcerningitspotential.Since
naturaldisasterscanchangethestructureofacityinmoments,havingcomprehensivebase
dataisimperativetosavinglivesandthesurroundingenvironment.Ascities,statesandthe
federalgovernmentexpandtheirGIScapacities,furthersolutionscanbeidentifiedforthe
aforementionedlimitations.
GeographicInformationSystemsarebecomingmoreaccurateandcompletewith
softwareandtechnologicaladvancements.Thecapabilitiestocompiledataonboththeground
andaeriallevelsaremoreadvancedthaninthepast.Thisfacilitatestheavailabilityofmore
detailedemergencypreparednesssystemsforthefuture.Cellphonesandcomputersaremore
capableofhandlingdatathaneverbefore.Utilizingenhancedsoftwareinthesesystemsmay
pinpointadisasterzoneorinformGISprofessionalsthroughanopensourcesystemoflesswell
knownareas.Onlinemapsarebeingupdatedregularlyastechnologyadvancesthroughsatellite
imagery.Makingthemostoftheavailableinformationiskeyandasmorepeoplerecognizethe
valueandbecomeskilledinthesoftware,thedatabasewillbemorecompleteanddetailed.
Withevergrowingspatialinformation,GISwillbecomeamoreintricatepartthemanagement
ofnaturaldisasters.Thistechnologyhasandwillcontinuetosavelives,moneyandthe
environment.

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 AnnotatedBibliography

Cova,T.J.1999.GISinemergencymanagement.GeographicalInformationSystems:
Principles,Techniques,Applications,andManagements:845858.
ThischapteroffersfurtherexplanationofseveralaspectsofGIS.Thereisacycle
associatedwithdisastermanagement(planning,mitigation,preparedness,response,recovery).
Inthereading,theconceptofcombiningthepreparednessandresponsephasesisa
reoccurringtheme.Anotherfocuswastheusageofthereorganizedemergencymanagement
systemtodealwithsuddendisasters.Humanvulnerabilityisalargepartofnaturaldisaster
management.Assuch,evacuation,accordingtothereading,isthemosteffectiveresponse
strategyavailabletoemergencymanagers(pg.854).Toalleviatethepotentialfearor
confusionassociatedwithevacuation,managersmustwork,priortoanevent,tocreate
emergencyplanningzones(EPZ).However,duetothesurpriseofmanydisastersanddifficulty
identifyingprobableEPZs,itismoreeffectivetofocusonevacuationforanentireregion
throughevacuationvulnerabilitymapping.Furtherresearchisbeingconductedthatwillmake
spatialmanagement,GISprocesses,moresuccessfulduringthesefastpaced,hightension
situations.

Cova,J.andR.Church.1997.ModelingcommunityevacuationvulnerabilityusingGIS.Int.J.
GeographicalInformationScience11,8:763784.
Evacuationproceduresareavitalpartafteranaturaldisaster.Thispaperoffersa
detailedanalysisonhowevacuationroutesarepreparedtoensurethequickestandsafest
routesforthelargestamountofaffectedcivilians.Usingasystemcalledthecriticalcluster
model,analystsareabletoidentifyareasthatmayfacedifficultiesduringevacuation
proceedings.GIScanaidintheevacuationprocessbylinkinghumanvulnerabilityandriskwith
extensivedatabaseinformation.Thecomputersoftwareiscapableofconfiguringmultiplesafe
andeffectiveroutesthatarevaluablebeforeandduringtheevacuationprocess.Inthereading,
anevacuationplanforSantaBarbara,CaliforniademonstrateshowbasicCensusandTIGER
datacanbecombinedtopresentplannerswithinformationusedtocreateevacuationroutes.
Factorsincludingtimeofdaywillalterthepopulationinvariousareas.Thetypeofpotential
disasterswerealsoincludedinpartofthestudiesbutrequirefurtherresearchsinceaccounting
forpopulationvariancesareimportantinthespatialplanningprocess.

Cutter,S.L.2003.GIScience,DisastersandEmergencyManagement.TransactionsinGIS7:
439445.
ThisarticlecoinsthetermGIScienceasacombinationofGPS,GIS,remotesensing
andspatialanalysisworkingcohesivelytoimproveemergencymanagementsystems.Afew
problemsassociatedwithGIScienceareidentified.Inordertoincreaseeffectiveness,GISdata
needstobesimplifiedanduseableforuntrainedresponders,realtimeanduptodatelocal
infrastructureinformationisalsoimperative.FurtherGIscienceresearchcanenhanceresponse
byofferingestimatesofthenonresidentialpopulation,identifyingpotentialfuturerisksand
vulnerabilitylevelsallofwhichcontributetomorecomprehensiveinformationtofirst
respondersinanemergencysituation.GISciencewillonlybesuccessfuliftheuserisinformed
andthespatialdataiscurrent.Ultimately,makinginformationcomprehensibleforfirst

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respondersisimperativeinthefutureofemergencymanagement.

Cutter,S.L.1996.Vulnerabilitytoenvironmentalhazards.ProgressinHumanGeography20:
529539.
Publicandenvironmentalsafetiesaretopconcernsforanyemergencymanager.Inthe
paper,theissueofvulnerabilityisaddressed.Sincetheconcernofvulnerabilityisobjective,
thereisadifficultyconceptualizingawaytotackletheissue.Withrecenttechnological
advancesandincreasedavailability,GIShasbecomeaneffectivetoolforgovernmentagencies
astheyseektoidentifyareasvulnerabletonaturalhazardsintheirlocale.Thecompilationof
informationaboutthepotentialrisks,thesocialresponseandvulnerablelocationsoffers
decisionmakerswithavisualrepresentationofwhatthepriorityareasareinthecaseofan
emergencysituation.Incorporatingenvironmentalandhumanvulnerabilitylevelsprovides
detaileddatathatcanbeusedtocreatemanagementplansthatareeffectiveacrossthe
spectrumofpotentiallyaffectedresources.

Johnson,R.2000.EnvironmentalSystemsResearchInstitute,Inc.GISTechnologyforDisasters
andEmergencyManagement.16.
Theprimaryfocusofthiswhitepaperistolieouttheprocessassociatedwithdisaster
managementpreparationandexecution.Thereareessentialvariablesthatmustbeassessedin
adisastersituationwheretimeisoftheessenceandeverymomentcounts.Havingaplan
preparedinthesesituationsisextremelyhelpfulsothataidcanbedispatchedinahighly
effectivemanner.GISisakeycomponentintheplanning,mitigation,preparedness,response
andrecoveryprocesses.UtilizingGISineachphaseallowsdepartmentsandagenciestoclearly
communicateandquicklyaccessthesame,possiblyvital,informationafteranevent.Without
detailedGISdata,responderswouldbeunpreparedtoparticipateandmaywastetime
gatheringinformationthatcouldhavebeenprimedbeforetheevent.Acquiringuptodatedata
andhaveinformedresponseteamscanhelpalleviatesomeofthesurpriseassociatedwith
naturaldisasterphenomena.Additionally,thisinformationcanbeusedintrainingexercisesfor
possibledisasterscenarios.

Montoya,L.2003.GeodataacquisitionthroughmobileGISanddigitalvideo:Anurban
disastermanagementperspective.EnvironmentalModelling&Software18:869876.
InearthquakeproneCartago,CostaRicawherefinancesaretight,thegovernmentwas
inneedofemergencymanagement.Thisarticleconsidershoweffectiveseveraldifferent
geospatialtoolscancoexisttoprovidequalityinformationatarelativelylowcost.As
technologygrowsandevolves,toolsbecomemoreeffectiveandconciseintheirmeasurements
orimagesproduced.Theultimategoalofanyemergencymanagementplanrequiresinitial
organization,preparation,responseandrecovery.Accordingtothisguideline,acombinationof
GeographicInformationSystem(GIS),RemoteSensing(RS),GlobalPositioningSystems(GPS)
andDigitalVideo(DV)toolsprovedbeneficialinCartagoatvariousstagesintheprocessthat
offereddetailedinformationforlocaldecisionmakers.Utilizingthesetoolsandthegrowing
accessibilityofmobileGISsystems,urbandatacanbecompiledquicklyandlessexpensively
thanactualfieldcompilations.ThiscasestudydemonstratedthatmobileGISisaneffectiveway
toobtaincomprehensiveinformationquicklyaboutahighlypopulated,particularlyvulnerable

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city.Withtechnologicaladvancesitiseasiertoexecutethisprocesstodaythaneverbefore.
Thesesystemsareparticularlyeffectiveindevelopingcountriesbecauseitcreatesanorderof
eventstoproduceacomprehensiveplan.

Yamazaki,F.2001.ApplicationofRemoteSensingandGISforDamageAssessments.
StructuralSafetyandReliability.111.
Thispaperdemonstratedhoweffectiveremotesensingcouldbeasatoolinthe
assessmentbothbeforeandafteranaturaldisaster.Dependingonthesituation,either
satellitesoraerialphotographycanbeused.Aerialphotographyoffersimagesveryquicklyat
highresolutionsoverasmallareawhilesatellitesusingsyntheticapertureradar,SAR,cover
largerareabutimagescantakeweekstodevelop.Nomatterhowthemethod,onceobtained
imagescanthenbecomparedtoonestakenpriortotheincident.Thesidebysideassessment
canprovidedetailsthatmaynotbeavailableonthegroundlevel.Theyshowtherealtime
differencethatareeasytointerpretandanyinconsistenciesinaphotocanberectifiedtomake
analysiseasier.AftertheKobeearthquakein1995,remotesensingwasusedtoassessthe
situation.Itwasavaluabletoolthatofferedhighresolutionimagesoftheaffectedarea.
Additionally,thecombinationofGISandremotesensingthroughsatellitesprovedcrucialinthe
assessmentinIndiaafteranearthquakein2001.Theextensiveinformationallowedresearchers
tocreatea3DmodeloftheaffectedareausingdatafromGISanddetailedsatelliteimages.
Utilizingthebestfeaturesofeachtool,GISandremotesensing,comprehensivedatabasescan
becreatedwhichwillprovidefutureresponseteamswithinformationthatwillaidinthe
developmentandexecutionofemergencymanagementplansinthefuture.