Supporting Hawaii During Unprecedented Severe Weather

Top to bottom: Project Specialist Todd Bosse with Senator Daniel K. Inouye and
Major General Robert G. F. Lee at the Disaster Recovery and Assistance Center (DARC) on Kauai;
Bosse with Governor Linda Lingle at the DARC Center on Oahu;
Bosse briefs Hawaii State Civil Defense officials Ed Teixeira and Larry Kanda
on the extent of recent flooding. (Source for all images: PDC)

During six weeks spanning from mid-February to early April 2006, the Hawaiian Islands endured a series of record-breaking flood events and severe weather that is unprecedented in recent times.

Instability in the upper atmosphere locked in place over much of the State and flash flooding, thunderstorms (including some that produced funnel clouds), and even snowstorms at high elevations were frequently recurring themes. Says PDC's meteorologist Glenn James. "In my 30 years in Hawaii, I have never seen anything quite like this."

Floodwaters on the Island of Kauai in March 2006 (Source: PDC)

The severe weather focused much of its wrath on the Islands of Kauai and Oahu—and had deadly consequences when Kauai's Ka Loko dam burst on March 14, causing several fatalities. On the Islands of Oahu, Molokai, Lanai, Maui, and Hawaii, hazards such as flash floods, landslides, and even a tornado caused damage, impacted businesses, and disrupted infrastructure. As a result, Governor Lingle issued an Emergency Flood Proclamation for all four of Hawaii's counties, and the State was subsequently declared a major disaster area by President Bush.

"It is always distressing when a disaster claims lives. For us, this is particularly so when it happens on Hawaiian soil," says PDC Executive Director Dr. Allen Clark. "During these times it is extremely important that PDC works in solidarity and transparently with all emergency managers in every way we can."

During these weeks, PDC leveraged its modeling and visualization as well as rapid information distribution capabilities it had developed through its work in the Asia Pacific and Indian Ocean regions, as well as in Hawaii. To target the specific requests of emergency managers, the Center generated model-based maps that visualized the hypothetical consequences of additional dam breaks. This and other geospatial information was made available in a web-based "Hawaii Flood Support Atlas" deployed exclusively for the State's emergency management community.

Says PDC's Chief Operating Officer Ray Shirkhodai, "Timing is everything when responding to a disaster. It is so important that the information and analysis we provide can be rapidly disseminated and readily used by a decision maker when it truly counts."

Stan Goosby, PDC's Chief Scientist, recounts how Hawaii State Civil Defense requested "dam break scenarios" for various reservoirs on Kauai and Oahu through PDC's Senior Customer Support Representative, Julie Greenly—who had been providing intensive assistance to Hawaii State Civil Defense's near round-the-clock operations.

Left: Example of PDC model-derived "Dam Break" map used to
support emergency officials – click for full view. (Source: PDC)

"In one case, Hawaii State Civil Defense urgently needed to visualize possible scenarios if a particular dam were to break on Windward Oahu. The scenarios we provided were extremely important to their emergency planning processes—it was a case where information was put into use during operations and could well have saved lives," says Goosby.

The Center's personnel also provided active assistance "on the ground." Julie Greenly and Project Specialist Todd Bosse toured flood damaged areas on Oahu to analyze how the Center's products could better support response operations. PDC staff also interacted with members of the public at "Disaster Assistance Recovery Centers" on Oahu and Kauai—generating maps, providing information, and answering questions from concerned citizens.

Through its intensive collaboration with Hawaii State Civil Defense, the Center's Information products were also used to brief a panoply of State Officials including Senator Daniel K. Inouye, Governor Linda Lingle, and Major General Robert G.F. Lee.

Concludes Clark, "Officials throughout the State worked tirelessly throughout this very long and draining crisis. We were honored to have supported the exceptional work of our colleagues in protecting the lives and property of Hawaiian citizens."