Geoinformation for Disaster and Risk Management - ISPRS

priority. The updated large scale reference layers
were uploaded into the SDI reference datasets,
allowing the creation of raster maps based on
customized templates (figure 8).
The dissemination process was based on typical
Figure 5: Coordination Grid (red lines) over the area of
interest (green polygon show analyzed cells)
Figure 6: Example of damage assessment in the central
area of Port-au-Prince
methods of data dissemination, including: delivery
as an attachment to e-mails to a pre-defined mailing
list; inclusion into web pages, where a search engine
would help in identifying the searched product; and
delivery to specific GeoRSS portals. The focus was on
emergency management and a large circulation.
Because of the impact of the Haiti earthquake and
the number of GIS specialist asking for raw data, an
ad-hoc web application was specifically designed
and implemented, allowing to display and query the
available datasets and also to edit specific features of
interest (Figure 9).
User feedback
In an emergency, WFP needs information more than
almost anything else, to be able to respond quickly
and effectively and to plan the next phase of its
operation. The mapping products provided by
ITHACA in the emergency response phase were very
visual and easy for staff without a GIS background to
use. They gave a very clear picture to both field staff
and decision makers at WFP headquarters. WFP's
logistics teams used the maps to know where they
could open access routes, where warehouses could
be erected, where hospitals were located so that for
example, injured people and their families could be
helped. The maps told WFP staff where spontaneous
camps for displaced people were springing up and
where roads were passable to reach them.
Distribution sites could then be set up as closely as
possible so that as many vulnerable people as
possible could be reached. When security during
food distributions became a concern, WFP staff could
find alternative routes by inspecting the maps, thus
allowing them to get their job done as safely as
possible in a very complex and challenging
environment.
Figure 7: OpenStreetMap coverage over Port-au-
Prince before the earthquake (top), as of February
15th (centre) and February, 26th (bottom)
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