Presentation Type
Poster
A Warning System for Considering Social Characteristics of Population at Risk
Abstract
The state of Florida is impacted by weather disasters every year. Florida is prone to hurricanes, has the highest density of tornadoes per area in the country and is the lightning capital of the country. The government is in the process of implementing austerity measures, so accurate information on who and what is impacted by significant weather will improve emergency response. Using Python and Javascript, and with the help of NOAA’s Earth System Research Laboratory, we developed an internet mapping interface that displays National Weather Service (NWS) warning and watch polygons or county areas with pop-up menus showing demographic and infrastructure location data for Florida. The demographic data comes from the United States Census and the web interface displays the warning polygons and has a click-able interface to view the number of people by race, age, income, and the number of each location data in that area. The infrastructure location data includes gas stations, nursing homes, mobile home parks, schools, police and fire stations, and hospitals. The detailed information provided will help improve emergency response accuracy to affected areas according to the needs of the population, and the speed at which needs are evaluated.
Categories
Social Sciences
Research Type
Research Assistant
Mentor Information
Dr. Jennifer Collins
A Warning System for Considering Social Characteristics of Population at Risk
The state of Florida is impacted by weather disasters every year. Florida is prone to hurricanes, has the highest density of tornadoes per area in the country and is the lightning capital of the country. The government is in the process of implementing austerity measures, so accurate information on who and what is impacted by significant weather will improve emergency response. Using Python and Javascript, and with the help of NOAA’s Earth System Research Laboratory, we developed an internet mapping interface that displays National Weather Service (NWS) warning and watch polygons or county areas with pop-up menus showing demographic and infrastructure location data for Florida. The demographic data comes from the United States Census and the web interface displays the warning polygons and has a click-able interface to view the number of people by race, age, income, and the number of each location data in that area. The infrastructure location data includes gas stations, nursing homes, mobile home parks, schools, police and fire stations, and hospitals. The detailed information provided will help improve emergency response accuracy to affected areas according to the needs of the population, and the speed at which needs are evaluated.
