Indiana GIS Response Corps Committee: Preparing GIS Analysts to Support Emergency Events

1. Indiana GIS Response Corps Committee: Preparing GIS Analysts to Support Emergency Events February 23, 2010 9:00am - 12:00pm Bloomington Monroe County Convention Center302 South College Avenue Bloomington, IN 47403

2. Agenda • Welcome and Introductions (9:00-9:10) • Introduction to the IGIC Response Corps (9:10-9:20) • Standard Operating Procedures (9:20-9:50) • GIS Presentations (9:50-10:30) • City of Hammond - Becky McKinley (9:15-9:30) • Marion County – Dave Surina (9:30-9:45) • IDNR – Bob Wilkinson (9:45-10:00) • USGS – David Nail (10:00-10:15) • INNG – Christina McCullough (10:15-10:30) • Break (10:30-10:45) • WebEOC Technology (10:45-11:00) • Round Table Discussion (11:00-11:50) • Wrap Up (11:50-12:00)

3. Indiana GIS Response Corps Christina McCullough, Indiana National Guard

4. Mission • To create an inclusive and representative statewide network of response individuals and organizations dedicated to: • Enhancing accessibility to geospatial applications, technologies, and products which assist Emergency Management Practitioners in their decision making process in the event of an emergency. • Delineate all-hazards emergency management planning, response and assessment considerations.

5. Mission, Cont’d • Create a network for professional exchange and access to technical expertise. • Encourage interactions and collaborative initiatives among those conducting Emergency Support. • Promote the standardization of methods to increase the access and the value of data among many users.

6. Objectives • Provide geospatial support to the Indiana Department of Homeland Security (IDHS) in the event additional GIS resources are required to support emergency related missions across Indiana. • Identify geospatial personnel, technologies, and products that are appropriate for the emergency event. • Define processes and recommended data sources and technologies to support response and recovery phases of an emergency event.

7. Who Are We? • Indiana Geographic Information Council Committee • http://www.igic.org/committees/giscorps.html • First Official Meeting, April 16, 2009 • Monthly Conference Call • GIS Subject Matter Experts (35) • GIS subject matter experts from Federal, State, County, Local, Private, Public and Educational agencies. • IGIC GIS Response Corps Flex Viewer • http://mccullough-consulting.net/IGICResponseCorps/

8. IDHS Support Information • IDHS • http://www.in.gov/dhs/index.htm • District Coordinators • http://www.in.gov/dhs/3240.htm • Listing of City / County Emergency Management Directors • http://www.in.gov/dhs/files/Sanitized_Compact_Directory.pdf

9. Training • Indiana GIS Volunteer Corps • Incident Command System (ICS) 100 Training • Incident Command System (ICS) 200 Training • Introduction to the National Incident Management System (NIMS) (IS-700.a) • Introduction to National Response Framework (NRF) (IS-800) • National Infrastructure Protection Plan (NIPP) (IS-860.a) • Indiana Department of Homeland Security • Handling of Protected Critical Infrastructure Information (PCII) • Handling of Chemical-terrorism Vulnerability Information (CVI) under the Chemical Facility Anti-Terrorism Standards (CFATS) Program • WebEOC Introduction

10. Examples

11. Standard Operating Procedures John Milburn 111 South American Legion Place Greenfield, IN (317) 477-1150 jmilburn@HANCOCKCOINGOV.ORG

12. General Guidelines Reaching Out to Local Emergency Management Agencies with GIS Reaching Out to Local Emergency Management Agencies with GIS

13. Purpose The purpose of this presentation is to provide local government GIS personnel general guidelines for building a working relationship with their Emergency Management Agency (EMA)

14. What’s the Role of your EMA Director and Emergency Management? The role of your local EMA Director is to coordinate resources during an emergency. The EMA Director also serves as an intermediary between their jurisdiction and the Indiana Department of Homeland Security (IDHS) & it’s district coordinators. Emergency Management Agencies are involved in preplanning and generally preparing for emergencies. After an event occurs they’re also involved in damage assessment and recovery.

15. IDHS District Map

16. EMA’s & IDHS Maintain Common Operating Picture using WebEOC WebEOC is an online tool that helps coordinate response locally, at the district level and statewide. It’s also used for situational awareness on a daily basis. It contains a variety of mapping tools. Used to place and monitor work orders & resource requests.

17. Problem Statement GIS has wide applicability for emergency preplanning, response, damage assessment, and recovery. None-the-less, statewide there’s something of a disconnect between local Emergency Management and local GIS

18. Reasons… Dispatch mapping software is sufficient for initial response. Technical solutions often don’t deliver Training – End users may have little GIS expertise and even if they’ve gone through some training by the time an event rolls around they will probably have forgotten it Cost – The costs to purchase/maintain hardware and software is out of reach for many localities Problematic circumstances – Security protocols, access to electricity and/or keeping batteries charged, and access to a wireless signal (among other things) can sometimes make technical solutions undependable. EMA’s need something that works consistently.

19. Reasons continued… Many responders travel across jurisdictional boundaries to provide mutual aid. Different mapping solutions sometimes muddy a common operating picture. Even if responders have a technology that works most of the time they can’t provide the technology to all neighboring responders. EMA GIS solutions require data from many different sources to be effective. GIS is sometimes nested in a county office (like Auditor, Surveyor, Planning, IT, etc). EMA’s may be uncertain whether they’ll be able to count on a government office that’s not directly involved in response. They’re unaware of what GIS data and other resources their jurisdiction has access to and how easy it is to manipulate.

20. Working with your EMA Despite the reasons Indiana EMAs choose not to rely on GIS there’s still a lot local GIS folks can offer them. If your interested in working with your local EMA the Indiana GIS Response Corps suggest following these three steps…

21. Step 1 – Discuss GIS and Emergency Management with local officials For GIS folks working under a local elected official(s) this should be the first step in any major project we undertake. Start with your boss(es) and if they recommend you follow up with other officials follow their instructions before approaching your EMA. Before you talk to officials inventory your GIS assets, print some example maps, and have a draft emergency/911 map document prepared and saved so you can access it quickly through the GIS software you’re using.

22. Step 1 continued… Give officials an overview of your mapping capabilities and how those can support Emergency Management As they become more familiar with GIS they may have some suggestions for how Emergency Managers can utilize it. Listen closely to their suggestions and provide feedback as needed. Here are a few suggestions for preliminary maps…

23. IC 36-8-21.5Severe Weather Warning Sirens

26. Step 2 - Introduce yourself and GIS to your EMA. If you’re not aware of who your EMA is the Indiana Department of Homeland Security (IDHS) maintains a complete listing online at http://www.in.gov/dhs/. Essentially, you’re repeating step 1 but with your EMA Director rather than officials. Don’t be discouraged if they shrug you off at first. Start by putting a hardcopy map in their hands and asking them if it’s something they can use. If they say no then ask them how you can make it more useful then follow through with their suggestions if possible and provide them an updated maps.

27. Some mapping projects that may interest them… Damage assessment grid Street maps of neighboring jurisdictions Mapping critical infrastructure & facilities Routing maps Fire books Water accessibility maps Electric Service Boundaries Population demographics Stream direction, receiving waters and flow characteristics

28. Damage assessment grid The purpose of the grid it to coordinate people involved in damage assessment. EMAs keeps hardcopy maps of township grids and attach them to clipboards when damage assessment is required. Clip boards are distributed to damage assessment crews. The EMA Director keeps a large grid map under Plexiglas in the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) and marks status on grids with dry erase markers as crews report in. Director maintains contact with assessment crew via radio. Gives EMA Director and crew common operating picture and costs to create and maintain it are minimal.

29. Damage Assessment Grid

30. Damage Assessment Grid The purpose of the grid it to coordinate people involved in damage assessment. EMAs keeps hardcopy maps of township grids and attach them to clipboards when damage assessment is required. Clip boards are distributed to damage assessment crews. Director maintains contact with assessment crew via radio. The EMA Director keeps a large grid map under Plexiglas in the Emergency Operations Center (EOC) and marks status on grids with dry erase markers as crews report in. Gives EMA Director and crew common operating picture and costs to create and maintain it are minimal.

31. Grid Boundaries Follow Along Streets…

32. In Addition to a Map Field Crews have a Table with Grid # and Boundaries

33. Street Maps for Multiple Jurisdictions Responders are often called on mutual runs in neighboring jurisdictions. Local dispatch probably doesn’t have centerline data for neighboring counties and dispatch in the jurisdiction responders are traveling to probably doesn’t have their centerline data. Local responders often turn to online applications like Google or Yahoo maps for routing. This can lead to delays as these applications don’t necessarily use the most up to date information. This map is very basic but something responders (especially fire fighters if they do mutual runs in highly urbanized areas) find very useful.

34. Street Maps Continued… If you have a data sharing agreement with your neighboring counties you can provide responders with the most current street information. The IndianaMap also has centerline data from multiple counties.

35. Combining Data from Many Sources, The Fire Book. A fire book is a compilation of address and street information that’s indexed similar to a commercial street guide. In addition to street and address information the fire book also maps information critical to fire fighters. The nearest water source, both draft and hydrant Hydrant location and water main sizes Pond and dry hydrant locations and their accessibility Routing information (disconnected streets, mile markers, railroad crossings, streets in adjacent jurisdictions) Critical facilities such as schools and airports Areas off the radar of dispatch such as trailer lots, campground plots, and apartment buildings. Electric Service Boundaries

36. Water

37. Routing

38. Critical Facilities

39. Schools

40. Areas off the Radar of Dispatch

41. Areas off the Radar of Dispatch

42. Dry Hydrant Locations and Specs

43. Fire books continued… Mapping projects relevant to responders don’t have to be in a fire book format. This format was just preferred by many of Hancock County’s responders. A lot of the information contained in the Hancock fire books is available online free from the IndianaMap and Indiana Spatial Data Portal. IndianaMap – mile markers, railroad crossings, active railroads, neighboring street centerlines (for some counties), fire stations, and electric services boundaries. Indiana Spatial Data Portal – Aerial Photography for the entire state.

44. Step 3 – Let your EMA Director Know You’re Available for Projects Talk to your boss beforehand and find out how much of your time they’re willing to commit. Make your EMA Director aware that you have the support of the official(s) over you. Provide your EMA Director with an inventory of your GIS resources. Demonstrate to them how easy it is to customize maps. Unless your EMA Director has a background in GIS (which is unlikely) avoid using technical jargon when detailing your local capacities. Provide them with support and training as needed.

45. Step 3 Continued… And it’s very, very important to listen to them. You know GIS, not Emergency Management and response. Let your EMA decide the direction GIS projects that support them take. If they want specific information in specific formats then give them what they want, how they want it. This may sometimes be an inconvenience but if you provide them with GIS solutions they can’t or won’t use you’re wasting everyone’s time (including your own). This doesn’t mean you can’t show them a new way of doing things using GIS but it they’re uninterested move on. Hardcopy maps don’t harness the full power of GIS but they don’t require the user to know anything about computers or GIS to use them. They also don’t break down, require passwords to access and take little or no training to use.

46. Serving as an Intermediary… The IndianaMap helps simplify data acquisition but not all the information responders need is maintained online. Obtaining the information they need means requesting data from utilities, and both government and private entities. The data compiled in the Hancock fire book project for example is compiled from over 30 different sources State – INDOT, IURC, IDHS Neighboring counties – Marion, Hamilton, Madison, Henry, Rush & Shelby County + Indianapolis Airport Authority Local – Hancock Auditor, Assessor, Surveyor & Sheriff + city of Greenfield and interviews with EMA personnel, law enforcement, dispatch & fire fighters Utilities – Veolia Water, Gem Utilities, Greenfield Utilities, Fortville Water, Shirley Water Private – various campgrounds and apartment complexes which provided hard copy maps that were digitized & interviews with managers or residents

47. Serving as an Intermediary Continued… Compiling the required information can be time consuming and sometimes frustrating. Some entities refuse to share data. Certain electronic formats are difficult to work with. Many entities don’t maintain data in an electronic format at all and integrating their information means digitizing it. You may need approval from your Commissioners or Council when trying to form data sharing agreements with certain entities. Your officials may not appreciate the value of the data you’re obtaining.

48. Intermediary Continued… Grit your teeth and deal with it as best you can. If you don’t make the effort to bridge the gap between the entities maintaining the information responders need they’ll probably never see it. If you encounter an obstacle you’re unable to overcome please let the Indiana GIS Response Corps know. We may be able to help you. And don’t forget you can cheat a little…

49. Cheating… StreetView

50. Cheating continued… If a water utility refuses to share data you can always turn to Google. It’s not as accurate and not all streets are mapped in StreetView but it’s better than nothing. Most utilities follow a color code convention on their hydrants (www.firehydrant.org) Blue : 1500 GPM or more Green :1000-1499 GPM Orange: 500-999 GPM Red : below 500 GPM