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Interagency Spatial Information Team (ISIT) on Tropical Storm Alberto, 1994-1995

The work of assembling and disseminating the interagency data sets was primarily from volunteer efforts by many people operating within contributing agencies or businesses while in a "disaster" mode of operation. As disaster operations were scaled back, typically within two months, most of the volunteers were reassigned back to their original agency and to its routine mission oriented work. As a result, many of ISIT data sets were not completed and reviewed by their respective agencies after the floods. Many contributions that were completed later were not received and incorporated into the ISIT's flood information database including the spatial extent of the flooding. Hence, a complete summary of flood related data necessary for quantitative post flood assessments and future flood planning and prevention is missing.

The solution, therefore, is to conduct the information aspects of flood disasters in Georgia as was done for those in the Midwest. Strategic disaster data sets such as flood extent need to be documented, published, and archived into an easily retrievable form, such as from the Internet. Responsibilities for forming interagency spatial information teams such as ISIT and to ensure work completion need to be delineated. Funding must be provided to enable post disaster and scientific assessments to identify what worked well, what else is needed, and how best to prevent future occurrences. Without a plan in place for qualitative and quantitative assessments of storms such as Tropical Storm Alberto, we cannot be sure that we will be better off the second time. In short, ISIT type information activities must be vested and must be completed after each large-scale disaster.

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