Consumers will soon be able to see the results of a National Hurricane Center model using a Google service so they could view their exposure to storm surge resulting from a variety of hurricanes.
Stephen Baig, an oceanographer with the NHC, said consumers will be able to input their location and then view various tracks of hypothetical hurricanes, ranging in speed and size.
They can then see precomputed storm surge damage results based on data compiled by the NHC. The service will be accessed through Google Earth. “What we're doing is making available, in Google format, data from what we call our SLOSH (Sea, Lake, and Overland Surges from Hurricanes) model–our storm surge model,” said Mr. Baig.
The service will cover regions at risk from hurricanes, including Florida, the Gulf Coast and the East Coast as far north as Maine, Mr. Baig said. He added that it is expected to be up and running by this coming hurricane season.
Mr. Baig stressed that this service should not be used to form personal decisions on evacuation planning. “Absolutely not,” he said. “I discourage that as strongly as I can. The people to listen to are the local emergency managers when it comes to evacuations.”
Julie Pulliam, director of public affairs, Southeast region, for the American Insurance Association, said she was not familiar with this upcoming service, but that her initial thoughts were positive. “If it's an educational tool that consumers could use, then that would be very positive,” she said.
Speaking to whether a service that demonstrates the potential for storm surge damage in hurricane-prone regions could help increase the take-up of flood insurance, Ms. Pulliam said it would depend on the level of detail that consumers have access to.
“Theoretically, it certainly could [help with flood insurance take-up]. If people…are aware that they're at higher risk for storm activity including flooding, then perhaps that would be an additional inducement to get out there and buy the flood coverage that they need,” she said.
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