APEC 2011 Summit in Honolulu
The eyes of the world were on Honolulu November 7–14 as heads of
state and numerous other high-ranking officials from more than 20
countries gathered for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation
(APEC)
USA Summit 2011. From the perspective of U.S. officials
charged with ensuring the safety of participants, the Summit was
a “National Special Security Event.” PDC collaborated with
various agencies in preparation for and participation in the
Summit and related conferences during the week-long event.
Read more…
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Helping to Manage International Charter for NZ Oil Spill
In the middle of the night between October 4 and 5, the merchant vessel Rena ran aground on the Astrolabe Reef off the coast of Tauranga, New Zealand. In addition to more than 1,300 cargo containers, the ship was carrying 1,700 tons of heavy fuel oil and 200 tons of marine diesel oil. An oil spill that has been called the worst environmental disaster in the history of New Zealand ensued. The International Charter: “Space and Major Disasters” was activated because space-sourced imagery was essential since severe weather on sea level made it hard to monitor or respond to the disaster. The U.S. Geological Survey, on behalf of Maritime New Zealand, asked PDC to manage the international resources available through the Charter for this event. For three weeks starting on October 12, PDC was on-duty, locating, acquiring, processing and disseminating vital data to those responding to the spill.
New Public Weather Resource Launched by PDC
On Monday, October 3, PDC gave a soft-launch to a new online resource for weather products, a blog-based medium called the PDC Weather Wall. This open-access website is used daily by professional disaster managers and is accessible to the general public. Senior Weather Specialist Glenn James posts new products to the site several times each day in the form of Tropical Cyclone Activity Reports for the Pacific and Indian Ocean, the Atlantic and Caribbean (during the cyclone season). Also found on the PDC Weaterh Wall are hazard-related alerts and disaster-related humanitarian assistance news. At any given time, the five most recent postings will appear on the front page, but users can navigate to any item by the date of the posting or the article's category. The launch of the fully functioning blog is planned for January.
Responding to Historic Flooding in Thailand
Monsoonal flooding began to affect Thailand in July. The annual monsoons (storms) and related floods are not generally considered to be disasters. The 2011 flooding, however, became destructive, eventually extending through cities and rural districts to cover, according to the International Charter, two-thirds of the country. Despite efforts to prevent flooding from entering Bangkok, in early November, the capital was inundated. Some urban districts remained under water for a month. By the time the flood waters were threatening the capital, PDC and the Thai Minister of Science and Technology were in discussions about flood risk reduction options. Pursuant the discussions, PDC developed a quick-action proposal, outlining options that would show immediate and measurable results in flood risk reduction. Additionally, PDC has been in discussions with the Ministry of Information, Communication, and Technology to develop and enhance the flood early warning capability of the National Disaster Warning Center.
Disaster Alert
Over a million users rely on PDC’s Disaster Alert to be aware of hazards that could potentially affect them or their loved ones anywhere in the world. The number of satisfied users of this app grows by thousands every week, and often thousands in a day. And we are continuously upgrading the app to provide more reliable and timely information about all kinds of hazards around the world. The free application, available for Android and iOS devices, is consistently
earning four- and five-star ratings from users. In less than a year, the number of users has increased by over 100%. Take a step to safeguard against hazards’ surprises and threats by downloading Disaster Alert for your Android or iOS device now.
Regional Humanitarian Partnership Workshop in Shanghai, China
Deputy Executive Director Chris Chiesa was an invited speaker at the UNOCHA-sponsored Regional Humanitarian Partnership Workshop in Shanghai, October 12–13. The international conference was hosted by the People’s Republic of China, Ministry of Commerce. Chiesa presented on the use of mobile apps, including Disaster Alert and ubAlert, and social media for hazard alerting and early warning. Fellow panelist represented the United Nations and Télécoms Sans Frontières (TSF, providers of emergency communications services). Representatives from 36 countries and numerous intergovernmental and nongovernmental organizations attended. The Undersecretary General of the U.N. for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordination Ms. Valerie Amosprovided the opening address.
Risk, Hazards & Crisis in Public Policy
An article by Senior Disaster Management Specialist Erin Hughey, Modeling Analyst Michael Chatman, and Science Advisor Heather Bell, titled “Who needs what? A Case Study of Post-disaster Damage and Needs Assessment (DANA) in Vietnam,” will appear online in the upcoming issue of Risk, Hazards & Crisis in Public Policy. It will be the fourth issue of the peer reviewed journal published since a team led by Bell and Hughey took over editorial responsibilities. The first—Volume 2, Issue 1—included “Does Comprehensive Emergency Management Work? A Longitudinal Study in The Commonwealth of The Bahamas,” an article by Hughey and Bell.
Supporting Search and Rescue Exercise
More than 1,400 people from 20 countries participated in Exercise Angel Thunder 2011 (AT11), the world's largest military combat search and rescue exercise, October 9-13. PDC provided products and services in support of this U.S. Air Force led exercise, which aimed "to perfect the art of rescue," according to DoD Live. PDC also provided subject matter expertise in refining the earthquake and flooding scenarios, as well as role-playing in the first for days of the three-week-long AT11. European, South American, and Asia-Pacific nations took part in the complex exercise that included elements of natural disaster, humanitarian assistance, and disaster relief, under the stress of combat conditions. The Center has been asked to play a more substantial role in AT13 exercise, including roles in design and execution. Planning for that exercise begins in April 2012.
PDC Technologies Are Upgraded Regularly
The analysts and specialists at PDC are always looking for ways to improve the Center's technological products and services, as well as ways to provide user-requested upgrades. August 2011 saw the release of version 4.1.2 of our flagship technology, DisasterAWARE—the backbone of the Global Hazards Atlas, the Disaster Alert mobile applications, and several early warning and decision support systems customized for foreign and domestic disaster management professionals. In this one release, several new map services (ArcGIS) were added, and over a period of weeks, they became available to users. This roll-out also included the (new to DisasterAWARE) use of the Microsoft Internet Information Services (IIS) application server, the free and open source PostgreSQL database, and Amazon Web Services cloud-hosted servers. Then, in November, DisasterAWARE version 4.1.3 became operational delivering significant data updates across approximately 700 layers, an updated widget, and controlled-access availability of a still-under-development disease surveillance system.
APEC USA 2011 Summit
The eyes of the world were on Honolulu November 7-14 as heads of state and numerous other high-ranking officials from more than 20 countries gathered for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) USA Summit 2011. From the perspective of U.S. officials charged with ensuring the safety of participants, the Summit was a "National Special Security Event." PDC collaborated with various agencies in preparation for the Summit and providing security during the week-long event, as well as participating in one conference activity.
For weeks before the APEC Summit, like so many others, PDC was busy monitoring potential hazards and sharing information via the DisasterAWARE decision support system (DSS). As world dignitaries began arriving in Honolulu, civilians and members of the military turned their attention to DSS screens and took up their duties, providing 24/7 vigilance.
The PDC-Hawaii State Civil Defense Liaison worked as a Team Leader during the State Emergency Operations Center (EOC) activation for the APEC meetings, coordinating with the Hawaii State Warning Point. She provided situational awareness graphics and technical assistance, while also cooperating with such organizations as the U.S. Coast Guard, Honolulu Police Department, and even local utilities to support the security and smooth operation of all APEC meetings, venues and movements.
PDC's Oahu-based Senior Geospatial Information Analyst started her participation long before the first day of the Summit by training members of the U.S. military in the use of DisasterAWARE. Then, for 16 days, she worked 12 hours shifts alongside the military men and women to monitor conditions and provide updated situation reports.
In addition to those behind-the-scenes engagements, on November 10, PDC Executive Director Ray Shirkhodai served on a panel titled The Risk Reduction Resilience Initiative. Shirkhodai was joined on the panel by the Vice President of U.S. Chamber of Commerce, the Executive Vice President of the U.S. Forum for Policy Innovation, the Director of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Coastal Services, the American Red Cross Senior Vice President for International Services, a Senior Partner of Meridian Institute, and FEMA's Deputy Administrator for Protection and National Preparedness. The panel was presented by Pacific Basin Economic Council (PBEC) and the East-West Center (EWC) on behalf of the APEC Business Symposium, a major segment of the APEC Summit in Honolulu.