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Russ Johnson Talks Esri and All Things GIS

How GIS supports response and recovery, and how Esri plugs into disasters.

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Photos and image courtesy of Esri
Esri
Russ Johnson has served as the public safety and homeland security director for Esri since 1997. His responsibilities include coordinating Esri's public safety industry marketing activities in the areas of homeland security, fire, emergency medical services and disaster management. Prior to joining Esri, Johnson held fire and emergency operations positions and served in Type I National Incident Management ICS teams in a variety of positions, including safety officer, operations chief, and incident commander responding to complex federal disasters throughout the United States and other countries. He responded to a series of questions about GIS mapping and the integration of social media into disaster response and recovery operations.


Question: More jurisdictions use computer maps for response and recovery activities. Where do you think the adoption of digital maps for use in the emergency operations center (EOC) at state and local levels is at in the United States?

Answer: There is a growing demand and desire for dynamic situational awareness delivered in the form of digital maps within the emergency management community. I believe we have only begun to scratch the surface on how dynamic data that’s fused with GIS-driven digital maps can support various missions within the emergency management/crisis management domains.


What are some of the creative ways people are using digital maps for disaster response and recovery?

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Eric Laycock



Photo: Russ Johnson, director of public safety and homeland security, Esri



We have seen some very effective GIS deployments supporting preparedness, response and recovery over the last year.

During the recent Hurricane Irene, we saw utility companies using projected hurricane paths to identify potential system damage. This enabled them to stage crews and equipment in locations where recovery could be initiated quickly to restore critical services.

After the devastation of the earthquake and tsunami in Japan, we saw various GIS applications supporting response and recovery. The common operating picture was consuming multiple feeds to support initial damage assessment and establish resource allocation priorities. This included fusing AVL feeds from the Honda Corp. that tracks all Honda cars in Japan. When the tracking data was integrated into the common operational picture, the absence of tracks in various areas pointed out potential damage and disruption to the traffic network. Social media (particularly from Ushahidi) helped validate power outages, hazards, emergency assistance, catastrophic damage, etc.

Other GIS applications assisted in long-term recovery. One such application was used to estimate debris type and amount. The application was used to identify where certain types of debris could be routed to and piled (temporarily), where debris could be piled and burned, and where environmentally harmful debris could be treated, managed or removed.

During the tornadoes in the Midwest earlier this year, handheld mobile devices were deployed with digital maps for initial damage assessment. In many cases, these mobile devices with GPS capability enabled personnel to find their exact location in the field when all existing land markers had been destroyed. They could send their location along with an initial triage report immediately back to the EOC or [incident command post]. With numerous devices deployed, the information was wirelessly transmitted and displayed on the primary maps within the common operating picture.

We are seeing more and more implementations of the common operating picture that support specific missions.


What would it take for a jurisdiction that is not using computer mapping to begin doing so? Is there a significant upfront investment in equipment or software?

I think it is important to understand that geospatial technology is a capability, not an application. If a geospatial platform is implemented, almost any type of application can be developed in-house or plugged in from a third-party vendor. Many times we get caught up by the promise of an application without understanding data requirements and interoperability needs. With that said, some agencies cannot afford to start off with this approach and that’s OK because there are a number of ways to start. Yet having a long-term technology plan and vision is still paramount to success. This will support short-term decisions that can grow and scale. There is now online mapping and GIS applications that support some elements of the emergency management mission. Esri’s ArcGIS.com is one example. This provides access to worldwide data and services that can be used for general needs.

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If the emergency management organization has access to a desktop GIS, they can create, edit, analyze and publish very specific data to their free online account to provide a greater level of detail and relevance to their online map display. Desktop GIS is very powerful. In my opinion, it is an essential tool for assessing and analyzing hazards and community values at risk. This analysis helps with mitigation requirements. Desktop GIS gives an organization a geospatial capability at a very low cost (low risk) and can be a step toward greater geospatial capability overtime. Again, a GIS plan should be developed as opposed to becoming focused on a closed application.

One of the keys is having short-term success that typically drives support for more capability. There are also a number of options today that were not available just a few years ago. A geospatial platform can be deployed in the cloud, taking away some of the hardware and IT capitalization and maintenance costs. A geospatial platform in the cloud can also be configured and deployed to serve organizations in a regional context. This allows cost sharing.


Social media appears to be playing a larger role in disasters. What is the evolution that you have seen with social media and emergency management? What opportunities are there for integrating computer mapping with social media?

Social media is a relatively new phenomenon that has begun to provide interesting opportunities and challenges to the public safety domain. We have seen examples, such as Haiti, where the only form of information coming out of an impacted area initially was social media. Was it authoritative? Was it always reliable? Was it always accurate? The answer to these questions is no. Was this information better than nothing? My answer is absolutely. I think these same questions and challenges apply to many aspects of emergency management and public safety.

From a geospatial perspective, when social media can be mapped, it helps resolve some of the challenges. For instance, a number of similar text messages received from the same geographic area can help validate information. As we begin to figure out how to use GIS tools (hot spot mapping, proximity to services or supplies, routing and other tools), the ability to make social media more valuable and relevant becomes more apparent. We at Esri are developing free downloadable templates that will enable our users to integrate geographic-based social media into their Web-based mapping applications.


Some organizations must be implementing social media within the Incident Command System (ICS). What have you observed as to where they utilize social media? Is it only in the public information function, or elsewhere?

Geospatial capabilities have proven their value to support incident management, particularly in an ICS context. With that said, it has largely been GIS desktop applications and hard copy map production supporting incident operations driven by a trained and qualified GIS technician. Web applications have largely been focused on providing public information and general situational awareness through a common operating picture. We have begun to see some interesting changes in this pattern.

During the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, Web-based geospatial viewers were configured and implemented to support specific missions. Viewers supported logistics, operations, command and public information — each built on top of the same geospatial platform with the appropriate data and tools to support different missions. Recently at the New Madrid National Level Exercise, additional geospatial viewers were developed for emergency support functions (ESF). Each relevant ESF had a geospatial viewer focused on impacts and requirements relative to status, disruptions, damage and mitigation needs.

Social media has the potential to provide timely information for all aspects of the emergency response function. Social media may be providing valuable data to support incident operations as circumstances change. If social media is providing information (particularly if there are multiple sources that help validate social media coming in) of changing circumstances on the incident, it may be appropriate to divert resources if the issue is critical. Obviously there is a danger in making rapid changes to an incident action plan, but we often do that on the incident as it changes anyway. Having another source(s) of information may alert us to critical issues that otherwise would not be immediately available.
 

A few organizations have tried using social media as one means for warning people. Do you have an opinion on this creative use of the medium for that purpose?

I think providing warnings that are under a prescriptive policy are valid. There are geographically based reverse type 911 systems in use today, where people are alerted to unfolding events and given recommended actions.

Social media is another form of being able to extend these capabilities if people choose to opt in by following an emergency management organization. Social media requires people to search for information or identify a person or organization to follow. Organizations have to determine what policy or programs they want to implement based upon a social media platform.

With that said, social media is another way to provide notifications for emergencies by location or a geographic area. In turn, recipients in the area can provide social media back to the center with observations and reports.


For big events, like the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, Esri deploys staff to assist with the mapping function. How is staff integrated into the larger disaster response network and where do you typically “plug into” the disaster response?

Typically Esri implements an ICS-like team at [headquarters in] Redlands, Calif., to support complex emergencies automatically. This may involve standing up a situational awareness viewer, a public information sight with social media, providing free software, data or technical support. Local Esri staff reach out to local users to see if they need assistance. We are careful to try and assist and not “get in the way.” We may host a mapping site [that] the local emergency management personnel are using or republishing. We may provide technical support for agencies to stand up. We may be on-site at an incident command post to provide assistance to generate incident action plans; or assist field personnel with mobile damage assessment applications. Our goal is to support our public safety customers in any way we can. Where we plug in depends on the incident, the customer and the specific needs or capabilities the user agency has in place.


What future evolutions of mapping do you see coming soon, and what longer-term developments do you see on the horizon?

We have discussed the use of social media, and we continue to work on tools and resources to support more effective use of GIS tools that make social media more actionable and understandable. We are developing Web-based viewers that align with the ICS roles and ESFs. Our goal is provide many of these viewers and GIS tools as downloadable resources that will extend the geospatial platform to better support emergency management workflows and mission requirements. We will continue to develop mobile applications that can be downloaded to support more detailed damage assessment and obtain situational awareness in the field. Our free ArcGIS Online capabilities will continue to expand to provide data sharing, private groups and access to applications, links to data, and other emergency management resources.
 

Eric Holdeman is a contributing writer for Emergency Management magazine and is the former director of the King County, Wash., Office of Emergency Management.