HURREVAC and HurricaneMapping.com

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HURREVAC and HurricaneMapping.com

• Past, Present, and Future Hurricane Tracking
  Tools for North Carolina

Karen Townsend Sea Island Software, Inc.
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HURREVAC
A hurricane tracking and evacuation planning tool
for government emergency managers

• Funded by FEMA, the US Army Corps, and NOAA
• Distributed to over 7000 users worldwide (560 in
  North Carolina)

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HURREVAC Historical Overview

• First developed in 1987 with FEMA grant to South
  Carolina EM
• Based on a DOS program developed by John Townsend
  at Charleston NWS called Decide
• Used results of a FEMA/Corps Hurricane Evacuation
  Study (HES) coupled with NHC real-time data

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HURREVAC Historical Overview

• Expanded to other states with early DOS versions
  for Georgia, North Carolina, and Florida
• Provided as product of a FEMA HES
• For emergency management and government use only
• The HURREVAC Inland Winds version of the program
  was introduced in 1994

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HURREVAC Historical Overview

• The first Windows version (dubbed HurWin95) was
  introduced in 1988
• Merged individual state versions and Inland Winds
  version into a single generic application
• HES study data and inundation graphics available
  as plug-ins to customize for state/local use

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HURREVAC Historical Overview

• HurWin95 was replaced in 2000 with a new version
  (Hurrevac2000)
• This version introduced NWS rainfall forecasts,
  plus East and Central Pacific tracking capability

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HURREVAC2000 Enhancements

• Traffic information from ETIS
• Inland flood tools
• National flood outlook
• NWS/RFC river gages
• Thumbnail maps at gage locations
• NOAA tide gages and SLOSH display

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HURREVAC2000 Enhancements

• Wind probabilities
• 4 and 5-day extended forecasts
• West, and South Pacific tracking
• GIS export functions
• Exercise Track Wizard

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Hurrevac has become an everyday programNot just
during times of hurricanes!
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HURREVAC2010

• Next Generation

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Hurrevac2010

• FEMA and US Army Corps have funded a rewrite of
  Hurrevac for the VB.NET platform
• 2-year project, slated to be operational in 2009
• All current functions will be migrated, but with
  an improved user interface

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Hurrevac2010 - User Interface

• TreeViews
• Tabbed browsing
• Dockable toolbars

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Hurrevac2010 - View Tabs

• Map views
• Advisory text views
• Report views
• Web views?
• Multiple map views?

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Hurrevac2010 - Data Tabs

• Current data
• Archived data

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Hurrevac2010 Functions

• Context sensitive presentation of functions

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Hurrevac2010 Datafeed

• Program window can be minimized to show just the
  data monitoring panel at top
• HTTP delivery methods replacing FTP
• Automatic data retrieval if desired

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Hurricanemapping.com

• GIS-Based Hurricane Tracking

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Background

• HurricaneMapping.com is a new storm tracking
  service from Sea Island Softwarea response to
  requests from GIS users in emergency management
  and business continuity for GIS-formatted map
  layers

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HurricaneMapping Goals

• Deliver time-critical storm tracking data quickly
  and automatically to users desktop
• Use file formats with open specifications, widely
  adopted by a number of mapping applications.
• Package in presentation-quality, ready-to-use map
  layers

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Data Formats

• KML format for Google Earth

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Data Formats

• KML format for Google Earth
• Shapefile format for ESRIs ArcGIS

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Types of Data

• Advisory packages, derived primarily from
  official forecast data issued by the NHC, CPHC,
  and JTWC
• Storms worldwide
• Atlantic Basin
• East, Central, West and South Pacific Basins
• Live storms, plus historical archives

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Types of Data

• Also rainfall and flood outlook products from HPC

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Shapefile feed for ArcGIS

• An advisory dataset is a zipped collection of
  .SHP files and associated files
• .LYR files included for quick access to all map
  layers with logical symbology and labeling
  already defined

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Shapefile feed for ArcGIS

• A lightweight desktop utility called Shapefile
  Manager monitors and automatically retrieves new
  storm advisories

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KML Feed for Google Earth

• A network link within Google Earth monitors storm
  activity automatically
• Archived storm advisories can be down-loaded from
  website

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HurricaneMapping Enrollment

• Subscription-based service
• FREE Beta season ending at the end of December
• Annual subscriptions beginning in 2008 affordably
  priced in the 150-450 range
• Media and enterprise-wide redistribution licenses
  available

www.hurricanemapping.com
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Future of HurricaneMapping

• Incorporate additional data types
• Storm surge data from the SLOSH model
• Gridded wind field data
• Build HURREVAC-like threat analysis tools for use
  in ArcMap
• Integrate with HAZUS and other ArcGIS-based
  applications

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Future of Hurricane Forecasting

• Emphasis on probabilistic forecasts
• Wind probabilities
• Storm surge probabilities

Noel19 34kt wind probabilities from
HurricaneMapping.com