Community Lifeline Framework for Leveraging Stabilization in Response and Recovery to Major Hurricanes

Area of Science:

• Environmental Science
• Disaster Management
• Infrastructure Engineering

Background:

• The US and Caribbean regions are highly susceptible to severe tropical storms and hurricanes.
• The 2017 hurricane season caused widespread infrastructure damage, impacting both inland and coastal communities.
• Disruptions to electrical power and communications were prolonged, affecting critical services for months.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the impact of severe hurricanes on critical infrastructure in the US and Caribbean.
• To examine the challenges faced by emergency managers in responding to large-scale disaster events.
• To highlight the interdependence of essential services like energy and communications during crises.

Main Methods:

• Review of post-hurricane damage assessments from 2017.
• Analysis of emergency management protocols and responses.
• Case study approach focusing on the 2017 hurricane events (Harvey, Irma, Jose, Maria).

Main Results:

• Catastrophic damage to utility poles, cell towers, and transmission lines led to extended power and communication outages.
• Emergency managers struggled with prioritizing efforts, managing resources, and stakeholder communication due to infrastructure interdependencies.
• Prolonged inoperability of essential lifeline services garnered significant attention from policymakers, media, and the public.

Conclusions:

• Restoring critical infrastructure, particularly energy and communication lifelines, is paramount after severe hurricanes.
• Effective emergency management requires robust strategies for addressing infrastructure interdependencies during disaster recovery.
• The 2017 hurricane season underscored the vulnerability of essential services and the need for enhanced resilience planning.