Integrated Hazards Mapping Tool

The Disaster Mitigation Act of 2000 formally establishes a national program for pre‐disaster mitigation. As part of the mitigation planning effort, state and local governments are required to perform assessments of hazards vulnerability, including the development of multi‐hazard maps. However, the number of communities possessing the technology, expertise, and time to create multi‐hazard vulnerability maps is limited due to technical and resource constraints. The use of Internet mapping technology has the potential to overcome these hurdles because it does not require users to possess a high level of GIS expertise or costly software, and it standardizes the vulnerability mapping approach. This article describes the Integrated Hazards Assessment Tool, a web‐based multi‐hazard vulnerability mapping application for local and state hazard mitigation practitioners in the state of South Carolina. The initial findings suggest the application holds strong potential as a viable decision support tool for hazard mitigation planning.