Center for Disaster Risk Policy (CDRP)

09/26/2024

Alright Tallahassee, Leon County, etc... The forecasts are trending west over the past 36 hours, which is bad news for Apalachicola, St. George Island, etc... but... this doesn't really mean anything. The cone is very tight, and the model agreement is frankly astonishing (IANAM // 'I am not a meteorologist'). It's coming this way, but exactly where the eyewall actually tracks is impossible to predict. It might go right over your house, or it might slide past you 30 miles to the east/west - you won't know until it is happening. What's the point of all this? I've heard a lot of videos in the past two hours saying 'IT'S MOVING WEST!" (or dumber variation). Yes, yes, sure, whatever, the forecast track has shifted a bit. That doesn't matter. It may shift back. I've seen the 'windshield wiper effect' a lot over the years.

So, again, if you are unsure, bail out. You should already be gone, but there is still time to get out before conditions get unsafe to travel. If you plan to stick it out, then you need to be at your ride-out location by mid-afternoon tomorrow. Take a hot shower, because it might be the last one for a bit. Then enjoy the show (and hope the trees stay mostly upright).

You should expect extended power outages, transportation issues, blocked roads, cellular outages, internet outages, and limited services for... a good bit.

If you are in an evacuation zone or in a mobile/manufactured home - go. It's simple - go.

I'll post at least one more update tomorrow morning, there are two more major NHC updates (11pm and 5am) that will tell us more as this thing gets closer.

08/01/2024

Florida SERT and local emergency managers are tracking 97L, and preparations are underway. It's entirely too early to really say where it's going (pic for attention, not for decision making) but it is safe to say it's going to be a rainy weekend across much of the state.

The main threat will be from flooding - not necessarily wind. The system could drop significant amounts of rain in localized areas, creating flash flooding threats.

Watch your local news/forecasts, and listen to what local officials advise you to do.

02/01/2023

It’s Annual Meeting week! We have six students attending and learning this week - FEPA is a key part of our EM education and professional development strategy.

01/10/2023

Welcome back to campus everyone! EMHS is pleased to offer students the chance to attend the Florida Emergency Preparedness Association’s Annual Forum later this month. Apply by 12 JAN for this exciting, professional opportunity!

11/20/2022

This weekend our team continued to support FSU PD and FSU EM at the Louisiana/FSU game. While working as part of the team ensuring a safe and fun day of football, our students gain valuable experience in how unmanned systems integrate with public safety. We also use the games as training and testing opportunities for technology and systems, including utilizing both and aircraft. The massive home win was a nice bonus.

08/27/2022

Another FSU Football season is underway. The EMHS UAS Team is out again supporting FSU PD and FSU EM making sure our fans have a great time. These long days are great opportunities to give students experience in how UAS integrate with public safety, and they let us test new software and equipment.

08/12/2022

CDRP is currently testing the Skydio X2E system as we refresh our fleet. There are a lot of things to like about the X2E, no the least of which is the ease of performing mapping missions. Today we flew a 2D GPS Grid mission, a 2D mission, and a 3D modeling mission, and watching the aircraft automatically dodge power lines, guy wires, trees, and posts as it mapped was incredible. The 2d mission data was pulled into Pix4Dreact and processed in almost no time flat. Pretty good day pushing UAS forward!

07/17/2022

Our team was in North Miami the past three days with Florida Urban Search and Rescue Task Force 1 (FL-TF1) as we participated in the annual FIU disaster exercise. Despite the heat, we accomplished quite a bit, including: a solid field test of Starlink, initial integration of real-time ATAK position information into ESRI ArcGIS, testing of new statewide TeamConnect TAK server, deployment of multiple UAS operating under UAS Tool in ATAK, live streaming to Tallahassee via Starlink, rapid mapping and push of processed products to ArcGIS Online and ATAK devices (sub 15 minutes flight-to-screen time), and of course lots of networking.

07/09/2022

We are always focused on what comes next.

05/31/2022

Spending money on mitigation = saving money during response and recovery 💯
Last week professor David Merrick discussed the importance of mitigation efforts with Marketplace. He explained that it can be difficult to convince decision makers to spend money on mitigation especially during blue skies or when an area has not recently seen a major storm. Yet as the Atlantic warms and storms become more severe, it's an increasingly risky gamble.
Read more here!

As climate change makes storms more severe, the costs of mitigating and recovering from damage is also on the rise.