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2009 HAZUS Conference Proceedings

The 3rd Annual HAZUS Conference took place in Raleigh, North Carolina August 10-12, 2009. This year’s conference brought together approximately 200 new users, experienced users, and interested users of HAZUS-MH, first responders, local government decision makers, planners and GIS specialists.

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Proceedings Content

RiskMAP Pilot Studies
This session will highlight lessons learned and results from the HAZUS RiskMAP pilot studies in Southern California. The session will cover, in depth, inventory database enhancements for these pilot studies. Finally, critical success factors for all HAZUS flood projects will be reviewed.

Embracing RiskMAP

HAZUS is an integral part of the RiskMAP project. This session will examine the role of HAZUS in the implementation of RiskMAP and how as HAZUS users we can participate in the larger RiskMAP project.

Innovative Uses of HAZUS-MH

This session includes a presentation of how Texas coastal communities prepared for Hurricane Ike, demonstrating an innovative approach to support decision making, and highlighting the City of Houston OEM's wind reporting system: a semi real-time website that publishes wind information to the public during a hurricane event. Shanna Michael will demonstrate how the AECOM team was able to run the entire National Flood Hazard Layer thru HAZUS-MH in approximately six weeks using an internally developed tool. Using the methodology of the Advanced Engineering Building Module in HAZUS-MH, Stuart Moffatt will demonstrate how he has produced a loss estimation map with model-generated structural dollar losses for over 250,000 single-family residences of Salt Lake County.

Using HAZUS-MH for Mitigation Plannning

This session will describe the Hawaii HAZUS Atlas which has been used to support State and County training exercises and a real earthquake event on the Big Island. Also covered will be techniques and lessons learned in using HAZUS in Hazard Mitigation Plan risk analyses for State and local governments. Darrin Punchard will present how the City of Savannah used HAZUS to update their CRS Flood Mitigation Plan.

CDMS and HAZUS-MH Data Collection 

Both Florida and South Carolina have successfully incorporated the CDMS tool into their HAZUS projects. Representatives from each state will demonstrate their incorporation of this tool and answer questions regarding setting-up CDMS Web Portals.

Using HAZUS-MH for Response and Recovery 

This session highlights three innovative approaches in the use of HAZUS for response and recovery. Doug Bausch will show how HAZUS-based loss estimates will be critical in testing the recommended emergency activation levels from USGS products. Nick Delmedico says, "Don't abandon projects that have 100 meter DEMs, huge census blocks, large geographical areas, and limited populations," because HAZUS can still provide answers. Mike Robinson will illustrate how HAZUS analysis has great potential for supporting FEMA's Individuals and Households Program.

Future of HAZUS Technology 

The greatly anticipated HAZUS-MH MR4 has been released. Come to this session to learn about all of the enhancements and how to apply them toward your risk analysis projects. In addition, learn about the future options and directions for the HAZUS methodology.

Available Resources: Online, in the Classroom, and in Print 

The Federal Emergency Management Agency provides support to all HAZUS users in the form of online resources, training and printed publications. Phillip Moore from EMI will outline the HAZUS training program for the coming year, including the HAZUS Practitioner and HAZUS Professional training programs. This is a great session for learning how to collaborate online with other HAZUS users.

HAZUS User Group (HUG) Meeting: Welcom North Carolina HUG and HAZUS Higher Education Resources Clearinghouse 

FEMA is proud to feature the North Carolina HAZUS User Group at this year's conference. This session will highlight how and why to participate in a HAZUS User Group. Learn from several HUG leaders about their achievements and how to apply them in your region. The session will also introduce the expanding HAZUS Higher Education Resources Clearinghouse.

HAZUS Q&A with the Developers

Do you have a question about the inner workings of HAZUS? This session is a fabulous opportunity to meet face-to-face with the HAZUS model developers.

HAZUS Validation Studies

Doug Bausch will present a comparison of observed and modeled damages from the Kiholo Bay, Hawaii earthquake. Comparisons of observed vs. modeled results show good correlation, including casualties, structural and non-structural economic losses, highway bridge impacts, and damage by building counts. Herbert Longenecker will present a study of observed versus predicted losses for the coastal flooding event caused by Hurricane Katrina in Hancock, Harrison and Jackson Counties, Mississippi.

Keynote Speakers and Awards Ceremony 

Please join us for an exciting final session where we have the pleasure of two keynote speakers, Dr. John Pine and Dr. Gavin Smith. Dr. John Pine will present his work on using HAZUS for decision making and Dr. Gavin Smith will address the broad policy and planning implications of assessing natural hazards risks. Following their presentation, Eric Berman and David Maurstad will host the annual awards ceremony where we will present the Innovation Awards, User Group Awards, and Certified HAZUS-MH Professionals and Practitioner Awards.

CDMS Training Workshop 

This workshop will focus on enhancing the HAZUSMH supplied inventory with locally developed data. It is recommended for GIS analysts, database administrators, and others who will be responsible for migrating local data into the HAZUS-MH database structure. Workshop presenters will demonstrate the tools and capabilities of the Comprehensive Data Management System (CDMS) that streamline the data update process. The workshop presenters will also identify those inventory elements that have the most impact on the estimation of losses for flood, earthquake, and hurricane events.

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Last Modified: Thursday, 29-Oct-2009 12:29:52 EDT