Hazard Mitigation Plan for the ETSU Campus

ETSU Department of Geosciences faculty Dr. Andrew Joyner received a Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the Tennessee Emergency Management Agency (TEMA) grant to develop the first ever Hazard Mitigation Plan (HMP) for the ETSU campus, beginning in the summer of 2016.  HMPs help to identify long-term, broadly supported strategies for risk reduction and align resources on the greatest risks and vulnerabilities. In conjunction with the grant, a new lab in the Department of Geosciences has been created the Geoinformatics and Disaster Science (GADS) Lab.  We work closely with multiple staff and faculty members across campus to develop a map- and GIS-intensive HMP that will include extensive geospatial databases, modeling, analysis, open-source GIS solutions and products, interactive/mobile web map services, and UAV (i.e., drone)-derived products that include aerial photos and building assessments.  Assessed hazards include drought, extreme temperatures, flooding/extreme precipitation, thunderstorms (incl. hail, lightning, and wind), tornadoes, tropical cyclones, wildfires, winter weather, earthquakes, landslides, and subsidence/sinkholes.