Guidance to Help State GIS Professionals Prepare for Emergencies

“This document was developed following a February meeting of NSGIC members where we discussed deficiencies that we’ve encountered in supporting emergency management within our states” said Bruce Oswald, NSGIC’s liaison to the US Department of Homeland Security. “This is not a checklist designed for use during actual emergencies,” Oswald emphasized. “This document was created for GIS professionals with a checklist of resources and actions to be taken before emergencies to maximize the impact of important geospatial decision-making tools during a State Emergency Operations (EOC) activation.”

The Pre-Incident Checklist document was developed by NSGIC’s Geospatial Preparedness Committee co-chaired by Jon Paoli, GIS coordinator for Iowa Homeland and Emergency Management, and Josh Groeneveld, GIS coordinator for the Utah Division of Emergency Management, and unveiled this week during NSGIC’s Annual Conference.

The document includes topics of integration of GIS into the organizational workflow, hardware, software, connectivity, data and data services, GIS products, staffing, training, communication and mobile (in the event of a mobile deployment).

Participation in the NSGIC Geospatial Preparedness Committee is open to all GIS professionals interested in geospatial preparedness, including those in state and local government.