Hurricane Mapping

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) can change that, allowing locals and responders to work together to create real-time maps and data systems to help save lives. In 2017, survivors of Hurricane Harvey in Texas created pins on Google maps and added attribute data like ‘Woman in Labor’ to help first responders. GIS was used after Hurricane Maria devastated Puerto Rico in 2017 to track which parts of the island had lost power, cell service and access to potable water, and after Hurricane Irma, also in 2017, to map out flooded parts of Florida’s Gulf Coast.

Hurricanes form when thunderstorms suck up warm air near the ocean’s surface and convert it into high-intensity, circular winds higher in the atmosphere. This occurs in the North Atlantic in the late summer and early fall, when the ocean is warmest in this part of the world. The winds of a hurricane spin around a core of low-pressure air, called the eye of the hurricane. A hurricane’s path is determined by global winds as well as the high- and low-pressure systems around it. Hurricanes begin as low-pressure tropical depressions; as they grow in force they are upgraded to tropical storms, and when these storm systems obtain sustained winds of 74 mph or higher, they are categorized as hurricanes. Hurricanes are rated on a scale of one to five based on their wind speeds and the potential damage they can cause. Wind speeds are just one factor in the damage a hurricane can cause–the other is the water that a storm can push onto land, called a storm surge, which can cause flooding. Most hurricane deaths are caused by storm surges.