Manage and communicate emergency information

Emergencies—such as floods, fires, earthquakes, and storms—present recurring challenges to communities around the world. Sharing a common operational picture allows organizations to respond quickly and effectively, tracking impacts and coordinating and allocating resources. In this tutorial, you will take the role of an emergency manager in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, responding to flooding. You will install and configure the Emergency Management Operations Solution and use it to share data with other responders and the community.

Requirements

• ArcGIS Online Creator and Publisher
• ArcGIS Survey123 Connect
• ArcGIS Pro
• 10 credits

Deploy the emergency management solution

The Emergency Management Operations solution helps agencies implement a data-driven approach that ensures that emergency managers are aware of rapidly changing conditions and can communicate disruptions to critical services and any evacuation notices to stakeholders in a community. The solution includes a dashboard for your command center, a focused app for editing data and understanding impact, an ArcGIS Hub site for sharing information with the public, and two ArcGIS Survey123 forms for making focused edits by the appropriate staff. These are supported by maps and hosted feature layers. Deploying the solution installs the entire system, ready for you to load data and customize.

Deploy the solution

First, you will deploy the Emergency Management Operations Solution to your ArcGIS Online organization.

1. Sign in to your ArcGIS Online organization.

   Note:

   If you don't have an organizational account, see options for software access.

   You will need a Creator user type and a Publisher role.

2. On the ribbon, click the app launcher and click Solutions.

   

   The ArcGIS Solutions page appears.

3. In the Filters list, expand Public Safety and click Emergency Management.

   

4. In the search results, click Emergency Management Operations.

   

5. Click Deploy now.

   

   The My Solutions tab opens, and the Emergency Management Operations card appears with a progress indicator.

   

   After a minute or two, the solution is deployed.

   Deploying the solution installs configured feature layers, maps, and apps in your ArcGIS Online organizational account.

   

6. Point to the Emergency Management Operations solution and click Open.

   

   The item page for the solution appears in a new browser tab.

   Note:

   It is recommended that you rename both the item and the folder where the solution is deployed to indicate that this is a test deployment of the solution. This keeps your solutions organized and will separate training and testing deployments from production deployments of the apps.

   For this tutorial, you will add the text Tutorial to the end of the solution item name and folder name.

7. On the item page for the Emergency Management Operations solution, click the edit button next to the item name

   

8. After the existing text, type Tutorial then click Save.

   

   You've renamed the solution. Next you'll rename the folder.

9. On the ribbon, click Content.

   

10. In the Folders search box, type Emergency.

    

11. In the search results, point to the Emergency Management Operations folder and click the Edit button.

    

12. Click in the folder name, and then at the end of the folder name, type Tutorial.

    

13. Click the Save button.

    You've deployed the solution and named the solution and its folder. Next, you'll explore what has been installed.

Explore the solution

The Emergency Management Operations solution includes a set of apps for sharing and editing data, a set of maps that organize this data for display, and a set of layers and tables that are displayed and edited in the maps and apps.

1. Click the Emergency Management Operations Tutorial folder.

   The folder contains the items installed with the solution.

2. In the Emergency Management Operations Tutorial folder, click the Emergency Management Operations Tutorial solution item.

   

3. On the solution item page, scroll down to the Solution Contents section and expand the Incident Status Dashboard section.

   

   The expanded list shows the feature services, tables, and maps consumed by the Incident Status Dashboard.

4. In the Solution Contents section, expand the Emergency Management Information section.

   The expanded list shows the Emergency Management Information Hub site contents, which include the Public Information web mapping app, the Past Public Messages Notifications dashboard, and the Public Emergency Messaging Dashboard. It also includes the Notices and Evacuations web mapping app, as well as the supporting feature services, tables, and maps consumed by these apps.

5. In the Solution Contents section, expand the Emergency Management Editors section.

   This section shows the Emergency Management Editors group. This ArcGIS Online group contains items used by emergency management personnel to edit simple web forms to update status messages that will appear in the other apps. These are presented in the Emergency Information Manager web app.

6. On the ribbon, click Content.
7. In the Emergency Management Operations Tutorial folder, under Filters, click Maps.

   

   Three maps appear in the list of items.

   

   The maps contain sets of layers used in the web apps of the solution.

   You will configure these maps later in the tutorial.

8. Under Filters, click Layers.

   The layers and tables appear in the list of items.

   

   The solution installs 23 layers, view layers, and tables. Some are for viewing in dashboards or editing by emergency managers; others are set up so the information can be shared with the public in a read-only way.

9. Under Filters, click Apps.

   The apps appear in the list of items.

   

10. Under Filters, click Clear.

    

    Now that you have deployed and familiarized yourself with the contents of the Emergency Management Operations solution, you are ready to conduct an impact analysis.

Conduct an impact analysis

The Emergency Management Operations Solution is designed to provide useful capabilities quickly. In this section, you will explore the Understand Impact section of the Emergency Management Information Manager app, a web app built using ArcGIS Experience Builder.

1. In the Emergency Management Operations Tutorial folder, in the search box, type Emergency Information Manager.

   The Emergency Information Manager Web Experience item is one of the results.

   

2. Click the Options button for the Emergency Information Manager item and click View.

   

   This opens the web app in viewing mode.

   

3. Click the Search button.

   

4. In the Search box, type Bay St. Louis, Mississippi and press Enter.

   

   The map zooms to Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.

5. Zoom out a little and close the search result pop-up.
6. Click Impacted Area.

   

   The Editor pane appears.

7. In the Editor pane, in the Create features section, click the Impacted Area feature template.

   

   The pane will update to indicate that you can click the map to start drawing.

   You'll digitize a polygon roughly around Bay St. Louis to capture the area impacted by a flood. In this example, the polygon is a rectangle, but you can digitize an area that more precisely captures an impacted area or an administrative area.

8. Click the map to start drawing a rectangle around Bay St. Louis.
9. Click to add vertices, and double-click to finish the polygon.

   

   When you have completed the polygon, the Create features pane updates to show required fields for the Impacted Area feature. Entering this information here allows you to capture important information about the emergency.

10. Enter the following information for the Impacted Area feature:

    • For Incident Name, type Bay St. Louis
    • For Description type Flooding of coastal areas impacting traffic in Bay St. Louis.
    • For Active Incident, choose Yes.

    

11. Click Create.

    The Bay St. Louis impacted area is added to the Areas list.

    

12. On the ribbon of the app, click the Understand Impact tab.

    

13. On the map, click the Bay St. Louis polygon.

    

    Clicking the polygon selects it. A pop-up opens showing the incident information that you entered. The pop-up is formatted to highlight the fact that the incident is active.

    Selecting the area on the Understand Impact tab causes an ArcGIS Business Analyst infographic report to be generated for the area.

    The report shows information on the general population within the polygon and people and facilities that are at risk.

    

    Note:

    Creating an infographic report consumes 10 ArcGIS Online credits. Once it has been created, viewing the report consumes credits at a rate of 10 credits per 1,000 views. Downloading the report consumes 10 credits per download.

    This report is designed to show the most important basic information about an area for an emergency manager in the United States. You can configure the infographic to show other information or to work for other countries.

14. On the Understand Impact tab, click the Infrastructure tab.

    

    The Infrastructure tab shows that the USA Structures layer for this area contains 8,712 structures. The number of structures you get will vary based on the polygon you drew.

15. Click USA Structures.

    

    The structures from the USA Structures layer are drawn within the Impacted Area feature.

    

    The data comes from the USA Structures layer with data from FEMA, available in ArcGIS Living Atlas of the World.

    You've deployed the Emergency Management Operations solution to your ArcGIS Online organization, explored its components, and used the Emergency Management Information Manager app to create an Impacted Area polygon for your emergency. You generated an infographic for this area showing the population and facilities that would be affected by the event, and you viewed the structures in the area.

16. Close the browser tab for the Emergency Management Information Manager app.

Next, you will configure the maps in the solution to better suit your specific project and impacted areas.

Configure the maps

You can configure the web maps of the solution to fit your organization's needs. Setting the map extent and adding bookmarks for scales that are relevant to your area makes the maps and apps of the solution more useful when they are opened.

Set bookmarks and extent for a map

By default, when the solution is installed, the web map extents will be set to your organization’s default, and there are no bookmarks. You will configure the web maps to show specific areas.

1. On the My content tab, in the search box, clear the search for Emergency Information Manager.

   

2. In the Filters section, click Maps.

   

3. Click the Options button for the Emergency Information Manager web map and click Open in Map Viewer.

   

   The map opens. The extent will be global, or your organization's default extent, if one is set.

4. Use the zoom controls or manually click and drag on the map to pan and zoom the map to show the continental United States, the Gulf of Mexico, and the Caribbean.

   

   This extent is useful for tracking weather systems, such as hurricanes.

5. On the map, on the dark toolbar on the left side, click the Bookmarks button.

   

6. Click Add bookmark.

   

7. For the Title, type Continental US (CONUS) and click Add.

   

   The bookmark is added to the Bookmarks pane.

   

8. On the map, click the Search button.

   

9. In the search box, type Hancock County, Mississippi and press Enter.

   

   The map zooms to Hancock County. This is a good extent for viewing local weather conditions.

   

10. Click Add bookmark, type Hancock County, and click Add.
11. Search for and zoom to the extent of Bay St. Louis, Mississippi.

    

12. Add a bookmark for Bay St. Louis.
13. On the dark toolbar on the left side, click the Save and open button and click Save.

    

    You've configured the Emergency Information Manager web map with bookmarks and saved it with the extent set to Bay St. Louis.

    Now, when apps that use the map are opened, the display will automatically be set to Bay St. Louis.

Update the other maps

For the solution to work properly, the other two maps should have their extents set to your area of interest too. In this tutorial, that is Bay St. Louis.

You would also add a set of bookmarks for viewing the maps at different scales. For purposes of this tutorial, you will only set the extents.

1. Click the Options button and click Content.

   

2. On the My Content tab, filter the content to show maps.
3. Open the Incident Status Dashboard map in Map Viewer.

   

4. Zoom to Bay St. Louis.
5. Save the map.
6. Go back to My Contents.
7. Open the Public Information map.
8. Zoom to Bay St. Louis.
9. Save the map.

Add additional live feeds to a map

The initial deployment of the Emergency Management Operations solution contains a couple of live feeds by default. The Incident Status Dashboard map includes Storm Reports, Weather Warnings and Watches, and Wind Station data. There are many other live feeds that could be added depending on your jurisdiction and needs.

You can find live feeds in ArcGIS Living Atlas. This blog post includes a list of feeds. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is also a reliable and authoritative source of feeds in ArcGIS Online.

1. On the My Content tab, filter the content to show maps.
2. Open the Incident Status Dashboard map in Map Viewer.
3. Click the Add layer button.

   

4. Click Browse layers.

   

5. Click Living Atlas.

   

   This limits the search results to ArcGIS Living Atlas content.

6. In the Search box, type Live Feeds.

   

   A list of live feeds featured in ArcGIS Living Atlas appears.

7. In the Search box, type hurricanes, click Active Hurricanes, Cyclones, and Typhoons, and click Add.

   

   The Active Hurricanes, Cyclones, and Typhoons layer is added to the map.

   Next, you'll add a layer from NOAA. The NOAA Weather Radar layer is available outside of ArcGIS Living Atlas.

   If you know the Item ID of an ArcGIS Online item, you can find the item by searching for the ID.

8. In the Browse layers pane, click Living Atlas and click ArcGIS Online.

   

9. Copy and paste this Item ID in the search box: 992fdc2afc224242b2c31a7f3c108064
10. Click Add.

    

11. Click the Layers button.

    

    The Layers pane appears.

    The two layers you've added are at the top of the layers list. You'll move them into the Current Events group.

    

12. In the Layers pane, click the Options button beside Base Reflectivity Radar (CloudGIS), and click Move.

    

13. Click Current Events and click OK.

    

14. Use the same technique to move the Active Hurricanes, Cyclones, and Typhoons layer to the Current Events group.

    Layers can have visible scale ranges. Depending on the types of layers you add, you may decide to set a visible scale range for them. Doing so is beyond the scope of this tutorial.

    Live feed layers can have a refresh interval. You may decide to set the refresh interval for live feeds that you add to your maps. Doing so is beyond the scope of this tutorial.

15. Save and close the map.

    You have added relevant live feeds for your jurisdiction to the map. In setting up an operational version of this solution, you would do this for each of the maps where you want these feeds to be displayed.

You've configured maps for the solution. Adding bookmarks, setting the default map extent, and adding relevant layers makes the solution more useful for your specific situation.

Load the data

Next, you will load some data into the feature layers. The process of loading data into ArcGIS Online feature layers can be done in a variety of ways. In this exercise, you will use ArcGIS Pro and the Append tool to load data from a file geodatabase into the solution's hosted feature layers.

Download the sample data

An ArcGIS Pro project package has been prepared with some key layers used by the solution. You will load this data into the hosted feature layers created when you installed the solution. In deploying the solution for your organization, you would load data from your own organization's GIS, or load data you download from your local and state government, or from other emergency management data Hub sites.

1. Download the tutorial sample data package.
2. Browse to the location where the package downloaded.
3. Double-click the Manage_Emergency_Information.ppkx project package.

   The project opens in ArcGIS Pro.

   

   The map contains several layers. They are CriticalInfrastructure_source , Shelters_source, Impacted_Area_source, Evac_Area_source, and Incident_Areas_source.

   The layers in this map are stored in a file geodatabase that was copied to your computer with the project. This simulates local data that you may already use in your organization's GIS operations. The Critical Infrastructure data was downloaded from the Department of Homeland Security's Homeland Infrastructure Foundation-Level Data (HIFLD) site.

   These layers correspond to layers that the solution installed. Next, you will add the solution layers from your ArcGIS Online organization.

Add the solution layers

When you installed the solution, a number of hosted layers and tables were created in the Emergency Management Operations folder. These layers contain the data that the maps and apps of the solution display and allow you to edit. You've already seen how you can add a feature to the Impacted Area layer by digitizing a polygon and adding some attributes in the Emergency Information Manager app.

1. In the Catalog pane, click Portal

   

2. Click My Content, and double-click the Emergency Management Operations Tutorial folder.

   

   The content from the folder appears in the Catalog pane.

   

   You may notice that some of the layers have names that are similar. For example, in the image above you can see there is an Incidents_public layer and an Incidents_dashboard layer. These are actually views of the same base Incidents layer that are configured with different viewing and editing permissions and shared with different groups.

3. Scroll down to the CriticalInfrastructure layer, right-click CriticalInfrastructure, and click Add to Current Map.

   

4. Use the same method to add the Incidents, Resources, NoticesAndEvacuations, and ImpactedArea layers to the map.

   Now there are layers on the map from the local geodatabase and the Emergency Management Operations solution in your ArcGIS Online organization.

Load the data

You will use the Append tool to load the data from the local file geodatabase layers to the solution feature layers.

1. On the ribbon, click Analysis.

   

2. On the Analysis tab, in the Geoprocessing section, click Tools.

   

   The Geoprocessing pane appears.

3. In the Geoprocessing pane, in the search box, type Append.
4. In the search results, click the Append tool.

   

5. For Input Datasets, choose CriticalInfrastructure_source .
6. For Target Dataset, choose Critical Infrastructure.

   

   Once you have set these two parameters, the Append tool is ready to run.

   The data in the project matches the schema of the data in the feature layers created by the solution. If you load data from another source that does not match the schema of the hosted feature layers created by the solution, you will need to use Field Matching in the Append tool to map the attributes of the inputs to the target. You can learn more about field mapping in the help.

7. Click Run.
8. Use same technique to use the Append tool to load data from the other layers of the project into the solution's hosted feature layers.

   Load data from Shelters_source into the Resources\Shelters layer.

   Load data from Evac_Area_source into the Notices and Evacuations layer.

   Optionally, load data from Impacted_Area_source into the Impacted Area layer. You already digitized a polygon into this layer, so this step is not required.

   Once the data has been loaded from the ArcGIS Pro project, the layers in the web apps will display the data.

9. Save and close the ArcGIS Pro project.

You have loaded data into the feature layers that support the web maps and web apps of the Emergency Management Operations solution. Next, you will configure two of the apps.

Configure the apps

Now that the data is loaded, you will configure a couple of the apps. You will configure the ArcGIS Survey123 forms to retain the previous entries to make it easier to update and modify the data. You will also update to the Hub site.

Get a table URL

The solution contains two Survey123 apps and their associated feature layers. The surveys are named Community Lifelines Editor and Public Message Editor. The surveys will be configured to save the history of updates made to the public message and community lifelines status, over the life span of the incident or emergency. Configuring the surveys to save this data will ensure information is maintained with subsequent updates and allows past information to be documented.

1. In your ArcGIS Online organization, in the Emergency Management Operations Tutorial folder, under Filters, click Layers.
2. Scroll down to the EmergencyInformation table item and click EmergencyInformation.

   

   When you click the item, the item description page appears.

3. On the EmergencyInformation description page, scroll down to see the Tables list and click the Lifeline Status table.

   

4. On the lower right part of the page, in the URL section, click the Copy button.

   

   This copies the URL of the REST endpoint for this table. You will use this information in the Survey123 Connect app to update the Community Lifelines Editor survey.

5. Open Notepad and paste the URL into a text document.

Download and open a survey with Survey123 Connect

You will use the ArcGIS Survey123 Connect app to update the survey.

1. Open ArcGIS Survey123 Connect.

   Note:

   If you don't have ArcGIS Survey123 Connect, you can download it from the Survey123 downloads page. Under Get Survey123 Connect, download the installer for the appropriate operating system. Run the installer and follow its steps to install the program.

   This tutorial uses functionality introduced in version 3.19 of Survey123 Connect. You can check your version by clicking the settings button and choosing About. If you don't have version 3.19 or later, you may want to install the latest version.

2. Start ArcGIS Survey123 Connect and sign in to your ArcGIS organization.
3. On the Survey123 Connect startup page, click Sign in.

   

4. Specify your ArcGIS Online organization URL and sign in with the credentials you used to install the solution.

   Once you are signed in, Survey123 Connect will display your surveys.

5. On the Community Lifelines Editor item, click Download.

   A notification appears that the Community Lifelines Editor survey is not on your computer.

6. Click Download.

   

7. When the download process is complete, click OK.

   

Edit a survey in Survey123 Connect

Now that you've downloaded the survey item, you'll edit it to work with the table installed by the solution.

1. Click the Community Lifelines Editor item.

   

   The form opens.

2. At the bottom of Survey123 Connect, click the Scripts button.

   

3. In the script code window, find placeholderURL.

   

   You will replace the placeholderURL with the actual table URL you copied earlier.

4. In Notepad, copy the URL of the table REST endpoint.

   

   The URL to your table's REST endpoint will look similar to this one but not identical.

5. In the Survey123 Connect script editor pane, select placeholderURL.

   

   Note:

   Be careful not to include the quotation marks or the semicolon in the selection.

6. Right-click placeholderURL and click Paste.

   

   The content of the LifelineTable URL variable is updated.

   

7. On the script editor, click Save.

   

8. At the bottom of the Survey123 Connect app, click Form.

   

9. Click Publish.

   

10. On the update review pane, click Next.

    

11. Click Publish survey.

    

12. Click OK.

    

13. Repeat the steps, starting from Get a table URL section, to obtain the URL of the Public Message table and update the placeholderURL in the Public Message Editor survey.

    The Public Message table is available from the EmergencyInformation description page.

    

    To open the other survey, in Survey123 Connect, click the Back button.

    

    To download the Public Message Editor survey, click the Download button for the item.

    

    When you have republished the Public Message Editor survey, close Survey123 Connect.

Open the Emergency Management Information site for editing

The Emergency Management Information Hub site is a web page that you can share to communicate with the public. It contains embedded maps and apps from the solution. You can configure the page with your organization's name and contact information.

1. In your ArcGIS Online organization, in the Emergency Management Operations Tutorial folder, under Filters, click Apps.
2. Click the Emergency Management Information Hub site app item.

   

   The description page for the Emergency Management Information item opens.

   

3. Click Configure.

   

   The site opens in edit mode.

   

4. Scroll down the page to see the sections of the site and the embedded maps and apps the Hub site contains.

Edit the organization name

Part of configuring the solution is editing the public-facing Emergency Management Information web page to contain your organization's name and contact information.

1. In the first large text block, point to Emergency Management Agency.

   In edit mode, depending on where you point on this app, you will see different controls for editing the site components. The app is organized as a vertical stack of rows, with text blocks, embedded apps, and spacer blocks.

2. Click the Edit button for the text block.

   

   The text block opens in a simple editor.

   

3. Edit the text to be Coastal Emergency Management Agency.

   

   Note:

   The text blocks can also be opened in a simple HTML editor view by clicking the </> Edit in HTML links below the boxes when in edit mode. To configure the style, color, spacing, and other display properties of the text, you can edit the HTML code.

4. Click the spacer block below the text block.

   

   The text editor pane closes and your changes appear on the app.

   When you deploy the solution for your organization, you can use this technique to update the organization name, contact phone number, and sample boilerplate text items on the page.

   For example, you would want to update the emergency assistance phone number.

   

5. Edit the content with information specific to your organization.

Edit the site footer

A footer template is provided with boilerplate information that typically appears on such sites. You will need to update it with your organization's branding, contact information, and social media references.

1. Click Customize.

   

   Note:

   Depending on the item in the page that you have selected, you may see Layout. If this is the case, click Layout and then click Customize.

2. Click Footer.

   

   The app scrolls to show the default footer content.

   

   The default footer for the app contains some custom HTML code. You can edit it in the HTML editor.

3. Click the Edit in HTML code-editor button.

   

4. Optionally, update the custom HTML code with information relevant for your organization.

   

5. If you make edits, click Apply; otherwise, click Cancel.

Save and publish your changes

When you've made the necessary changes to adapt the page to your organization's needs, the final step is to save and publish the changes.

1. Click Save.

   

   Note:

   If you close the Hub site editor before saving your edits, any changes you have made will be lost.

2. Click the drop-down arrow beside the Save button, and click Publish Draft.

   

   The changes you made in the editor will become visible on the published version of the site.

3. Click the drop-down arrow beside the Save button, and click View Published.

   

   The published Hub site page opens. You can test it and share it with the community.

   There are additional configuration steps to help you prepare for the organizational roll out of the solution. They are beyond the scope of this tutorial. Those additional steps include the following:

   • Provisioning users
   • Sharing items with the public
   • Modifying notices and evacuation orders to match your jurisdictional guidance
   • Configuring pre-established evacuation zones for hurricanes, wildfires, and so on.

You have configured the web apps for the solution. The final step is to use the solution apps.

Use the apps

Now that you have the Emergency Management Operations solution configured, you will use the apps in a simulated emergency to manage situational awareness and share information with the public.

View the incident status

The Incident Status Dashboard is used to maintain situational awareness.

1. In your ArcGIS Online organization, in the Emergency Management Operations Tutorial folder, under Filters, click Apps.
2. Scroll down the list of apps, click the Options button beside Incident Status Dashboard, and click Open Dashboard.

   

   The dashboard opens in a new browser tab.

   

   The map extent is the default extent that you set for the map.

   The indicators show status based on the features you loaded into the feature layers and the impacted area you specified.

   Note:

   In this example image, there are two rectangular Impacted Area features, the one sketched in the Emergency Information Manager app, and one loaded from the ArcGIS Pro project sample data. If you did not load that feature from the sample data, you will only see one rectangle.

3. Click the map and use the Zoom Out tool to see a larger area.

   As you zoom out, notice that the Weather Watches & Warnings indicator updates to show the number of watches and warnings from the weather live feed that are within the current map extent.

   Note:

   The weather information displayed will depend on the current weather conditions and your map extent.

   The Impacted Critical Infrastructure indicator shows the number of Critical Infrastructure features that fall within the Impacted Area feature.

   This dashboard will update as you make updates in the Emergency Information Manager app.

Edit data in the Emergency Information Manager app

When you first installed the solution, you added a rectangular Impacted Area feature using the Emergency Information Manager app. Now you will add a flooding incident point.

1. In the Content pane, in the filtered list of apps, click Options and click View to open the Emergency Information Manager app.

   

   The app opens in a new browser tab.

   The Incident Points layer should be selected.

   

2. In the Editor pane, scroll down to Flooding.
3. Click Flooding.

   

4. Click the map in the red polygon to add a flooding incident point.

   

5. In the Create Features pane, edit the attributes for the incident.

   • For Incident Name, type Bay St. Louis Flooding.
   • For Incident Number, type DR-4550.
   • For Report Time, enter the current date and time.
   • For Description , type Flooding in the Bay St. Louis area.
   • For Location Description, type North of Mole Dr..
   • For Active Incident, accept the default value of Yes.

   

6. Click Create.

   The incident is added to the Incident Points list in the left pane.

   

   You've added a point representing a flooding incident to the map.

7. Click the browser tab for the Incident Status Dashboard.

   The Bay St. Louis Flooding incident appears in the Incidents list.

   

   You've already seen how to use the Emergency Information Manager app to get an infographic of impacted people and infrastructure in an incident area, using the Understand Impact tab. Next, you'll update the status of a shelter.

Change the status of a shelter

You can change the current status of shelters in the Emergency Information Manager app.

1. In the Emergency Information Manager app, click the Inform Stakeholders tab.

   

2. In the upper left pane of the Emergency Information Manager app, click Shelters.

   

   A list of shelters appears in the pane below.

   

3. In the list of shelters, click the West Harrison Community Center item.

   

   On the right side of the map, the Edit feature pane opens and shows the attributes of the West Harrison Community Center feature.

   

   The Publicly Visible field is set to Yes. This means the shelter will show up in the Public Information map.

4. Click the Status field and click Open.

   

5. At the bottom of the Edit feature pane, click Update.

   

6. Click the Incident Status Dashboard tab.

   The Open Shelters indicator has updated to show that two shelters are open, though the number you see will depend on the extent of the map.

Update the Lifeline status

The Lifeline Conditions tab on the Incident Status Dashboard shows eight cards presenting the current status of important lifeline variables.

1. On the Incident Status Dashboard, click the Lifeline Conditions tab.

   

   Nothing has been reported yet. The dashboard cards indicate that no reports have been submitted.

   

2. In the Content pane, in the filtered list of apps, click Options and click Open in browser to open the Community Lifelines Editor app.

   

   The form opens in a new browser tab. You can use this form to make comments on the current status, and select the Lifeline status for each of the eight lifelines.

3. For Community Status, type Flooding conditions are getting worse.

   

4. Expand Transportation, and for the Transportation Condition click Moderate Impact: Yellow.

   

5. For the Transportation Summary text, type Transportation status is worsening. Some roads are closed and impassible.
6. Add status conditions and messages for the other Lifeline Status sections.
7. At the bottom of the form, click the Update button.

   

8. Click the Incident Status Dashboard browser tab.

   

   You may need to refresh the page to see the changes.

9. Switch to the Community Lifelines Editor tab.
10. Update the status of some conditions to indicate that conditions are improving, and click Update.
11. Click the Incident Status Dashboard browser tab.

    The status updates.

    

12. Click the Past Conditions tab.

    

    The Past Conditions tab shows the history of past condition status submissions.

    

    This tab shows a running log of how conditions changed over time with each entry.

Share information with the public

You can also publish emergency messages to the public on the Emergency Management Information Hub site.

1. In the Content pane, in the filtered list of apps, click Options and click View to open the Emergency Management Information Hub site app.

   

   The app opens with no current emergency or incident information.

2. In the Content pane, in the filtered list of apps, click Options and click Open in browser to open the Public Message Editor app.

   

   The Public Message Editor form opens.

   

   This form is intended for approved public information officers or communications staff to update the information on the Emergency Management Information Hub site.

3. Fill out the Public Message Editor form with the following example information:

   • For Is there an emergency or incident?, click Yes.
   • For Emergency or Incident Name(s), type Bay St. Louis Flooding - EXCERCISE EXERCISE EXERCISE.
   • For Action Required?, click Yes.
   • For Action Message, type Please keep vigilant and follow local information.
   • For Summary, type Please keep vigilant and follow local information.
   • For Details, type Public safety officials will determine the areas to be evacuated and escape routes to use depending upon the disaster. Law enforcement agencies are typically responsible for enforcing an evacuation order. Follow their directions promptly. You will be advised of potential evacuations as early as possible. Local public safety officials will use a variety of tools to alert you including this Hub site.
   • For Website, add the URL of your agency website or the URL of the Emergency Management Information Hub.

4. Click Update.

   

5. Switch to the Emergency Management Information Hub site tab.

   The message is displayed on the site.

   

6. In the Search for an address box, type 304 S Beach Blvd, Bay St Louis, MS 39520, and press Enter.

   

   The Notices and Evacuation widget checks the address and returns a message that there is an evacuation.

   

7. Scroll down and enter the address in the search box of the Public Information map, and press Enter.

   The map shows the location of the address and local conditions.

   

In this tutorial, you have learned how to deploy the Emergency Management Operations solution, configure the web maps with bookmarks, add live feeds, and load data into some of the feature layers using the Append tool. You configured the apps and saw how they could be used in an emergency.

You can deploy this solution in your own jurisdiction and configure it with the appropriate data and feeds. These apps are intended to be a starting point; feel free to modify them. You can also add apps to meet the evolving needs of your organization.

Acknowledgements

• Critical Infrastructure layer by the Department of Homeland Security's Homeland Infrastructure Foundation-Level Data (HIFLD) site.
• Active Hurricanes, Cyclones, and Typhoons by NOAA National Hurricane Center (NHC) for the Central and East Pacific and Atlantic, and the Joint Typhoon Warning Center for the West and Central Pacific and Indian basins.
• Base Reflectivity Radar (CloudGIS) by NOAA.