![]() ![]() Built using ArcGIS Online, FEMA’s GeoPortal allowed FEMA staff to build useful information and analysis tools and immediately make them available. Prior to Superstorm Sandy, Keller had been working on FEMA’s GeoPortal, which is a platform for FEMA to publish applications for use by both response agencies and the public. These products then aided federal and state decision makers with numerous logistic and operational decisions related to personnel and resource allocation. At each location, he produced a variety of geospatial products, such as the magnitude of damage, the extent of storm surge, and the damage to infrastructure. Two weeks later, he was sent to Tinton Falls, New Jersey, at the joint field office as it was being set up to coordinate the recovery effort. MacVie first deployed as the remote-sensing specialist in New Jersey and was the first FEMA GIS support on scene in Trenton, New Jersey, at the state Emergency Operations Center. He is the GIS coordinator for FEMA Region X, located in Bothell, Washington, and is responsible for Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. Keller worked remotely from his region to support those in the field. He is the regional GIS coordinator over Region VII in Kansas City, Missouri, and is responsible for Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa, and Missouri. MacVie arrived October 31 in New Jersey, two days after Sandy made landfall. For Sandy, we began assisting immediately.” FEMA’s Superstorm Sandy GIS EffortsįEMA activated thousands of employees for Superstorm Sandy, and its full arsenal of staff provided all manner of assistance. “We both work with our local GIS personnel to support regional geospatial needs. “Like all FEMA employees, we can be deployed when needed,” says MacVie. The application, called Check Your Home, provided easy access to imagery FEMA collected in coordination with Civil Air Patrol (CAP) and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) immediately after the storm. Built using ArcGIS Online and taking advantage of cloud capabilities hosted by Esri, the GeoPortal proved the perfect mechanism to get information out quickly. It was made available-along with many other vital Sandy response mapping applications-to the public using FEMA’s recently developed GeoPortal platform. FEMA regional GIS coordinator Cory MacVie, along with fellow FEMA geospatial coordinator Josh Keller, worked late into the night to create an application that allowed people to look at imagery that could help them see what happened to their home. As soon as Sandy finished its destructive path, staff arrived to provide aid and assistance, including mapping. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) was preparing in advance of the storm. One of the first questions people would ask: what happened to my home? Whole communities lay devastated from the storm’s path.įor those impacted by the storm-and for people with loved ones in the area-information, like where to find clean water and food, was a precious commodity. In the immediate aftermath, tens of thousands of people were impacted. In late October 2012, Superstorm Sandy pummeled the Northeast with violent winds, surging tides, and heavy rain and snow. In the Check Your Home application, the transparency bar on the left allows comparison of pre- and post-Sandy imagery. ![]()
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