New Orleans and
Louisiana GIS Information
Louisiana GIS Information
| <prev | New Orleans and Louisiana GIS Information |
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| The following summary is an excerpt from the ESRI Public Health GIS paper/presentation entitled, "Hurricane Public Health Research and Katrina Search and Rescue Mapping," Peele et al 2006 | ||
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| The LSU Hurricane Public Health Center (HPHC), Louisiana Geological Survey (LGS) and LSU Coastal Studies Institute (CSI) had consolidated over sixty layers of Geographic Information Sysytem (GIS) data and imagery of New Orleans when Hurricane Katrina struck in 2005. This GIS framework had been incorporated into a web-based GIS portal utilizing ESRI ArcIMS. The intent of the data layers was to support cross-disciplinary research on hurricane public health vulnerability in New Orleans. The data was also made available to emergency managers and requesting agencies via a password protected webpage. |
 The New Orleans Online GIS (HPHC 2006) |
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 New Orleans hospital, schools and district data shown with streets and overlaid on 2004 DOQQs (HPHC 2006) |
GIS for Emergency Response |
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The New Orleans GIS portal, with associated data layers organized in ESRI ArcGIS, was transformed into a mapping support tool for search and rescue missions in the weeks following Hurricane Katrina. Mapping of 911 calls, hospital evacuation, and military and Red Cross coordination were among the types of mapping support provided. Over thirty agencies and organizations requested maps of various LSU teams to assist them in disaster response. |
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Members of the HPHC worked in the Baton Rouge Emergency Operations Center (EOC) from the early days following the storm to provide mapping solutions, catalogue available data, field and track map and data requests, troubleshoot hardware, software and connectivity issues, and initiate volunteer coordination. In one instance, satellite imagery of flooded New Orleans was uploaded to the HPHC flood prediction web site. |
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In another instance, specifically in support of 911 call mapping, Ahmet Binslelam and Carol Friedland, LSU Hurricane Center, worked through the night at the state EOC to construct a New Orleans Street Atlas with alpha-numeric reference grids, to be printed on letter-size paper for use by LSP troopers. This street atlas would become an invaluable base template for other mapping solutions (e.g., LA Department of Environmental Quality and US Environmental Protection Agency among many others) as additional requests mounted. Grid cell size was constructed based on the amount of coverage area possible by each rescue team, to allow for maximum efficiency and minimum redundancy in force deployment. |
 The New Orleans Atlas, with street names and FEMA damage assessment layers over an alpha-numeric grid. Viewed as black on the image are hundreds of zoomable street names. Damage assessment colors are viewable upon closer zoom. Bottom left shows an integrated logo of the many GIS teams who supported the EOC in the Hurricane Katrina data and mapping effort. |
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In coordination with the LGS and Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries to match the call location symbology of the US Geological Survey (USGS) maps, Jason Knowles, LSU Geography & Anthropology provided valuable assistance in creating the LSP New Orleans 911 Atlas (associated 911 map figure with mapped call locations has been requested not to be published). LSU personnel worked closely with teams comprised of many agency representatives (LSP, Department of Homeland Security (DHS), USGS, Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries and LGS among others) to assist in this crucial mapping suport task. |
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GIS for Research |
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The web-based GIS portal was made available to project researchers, emergency managers and center partners beginning in 2003 through a secure logon and password-protected web page (http://hef-hurricane.lsu.edu) Additional features of the ArcIMS framework include facilitated data sharing between project investigators via downloadable layers, which can be acquired for use in individual GIS labs; and the ability to conduct basic geospatial analysis from any configured laptop with an internet connection. Many GIS data layers will be made available to the public as the project nears completion (summer 2008). Please contact R. Hampton Peele or S. Ahmet Binselam for more information. |
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Additional GIS Links for Louisiana: NOAA Spatial Data Products --- National Weather Service GIS links |
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LSU Hurricane Public Health Center ~ Suite 3221 Patrick F. Taylor Hall ~ Louisiana State University |
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