SGER: A Short-term Site Investigation of the 2008 Midwest Floods

Purdue University, West Lafayette IN

Investigators

Abstract

Abstract A Short-term Site Investigation of the 2008 Midwest Floods Recent floods in the Midwest have caused widespread damage in cities and towns in Iowa, Illinois, Missouri, and Indiana. This disaster has killed 24 people and injured another 150. Experts say that the fundamental reason for the widespread damage was infrastructure failures. Collapse of a critical infrastructure severely affects the associated industries and communities that rely on it. Therefore, disaster impact data should be collected and analyzed to determine vulnerable infrastructure and its impact on industries and communities. Such analysis would lead to better protection and support for associated communities and industrial services during the occurrence of disasters such as floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, and earthquakes. Since such data is ephemeral and vanishes with time, it is important to collect the data as soon as possible after the occurrence of disasters. Therefore, the objective of this short-term exploratory research is to conduct in-depth case studies in the flood-affected regions in the Midwest to obtain the ephemeral data with respect to the affected infrastructure and related industries and communities. Personal interviews and questionnaire surveys would be conducted to obtain such data from affected communities, industries, and responsible public agencies. Data would include accurate locations and circumstances of damaged infrastructure, the level of damage, and duration of service failure right after the occurrence of a natural disaster and its impact on the functions of affected industries and communities. This data would be analyzed in terms of social, economic, and technical impacts of floods on the affected industries and communities. The analysis of the data would enhance understanding of inter-relationship between infrastructure, industries, and communities in the event of natural disasters. Through this research, the methodology of disaster impact analysis and mitigation will be improved and the disaster-related preparedness of governmental and industrial agencies will be enhanced. This research will have significant impact on the industries and communities that are prone to the impact of natural disasters by improving the understanding of their vulnerability under such calamities with respect to their critical infrastructure. The case studies conducted through this research would be an effective tool for graduate as well as undergraduate students to understand the role played by infrastructure in supporting our industries and communities. The results of this research will help public agencies, industries, and communities to better prepare natural disaster mitigation strategies as well as provide an effective tool to handle the disaster-related resources.