New Mapping Tool Available to Prepare for Hurricanes

September 10, 2014

For more information contact: Peter Slovinsky, Maine Geological Survey (207) 287-7173 Lynette Miller ? Maine Emergency Management Association (207) 624-4420 Elizabeth Hertz ? Municipal Planning Assistance Program (207) 287-8061 at:

AUGUSTA- The Maine Department of Agriculture, Conservation and Forestry?s (DACF) Bureau of Resource Information and Land Use Planning is making available a valuable planning tool to assist local, regional and state emergency management officials in preparing for hurricanes. The Bureau?s Maine Geological Survey, with funding from the Maine Floodplain Management Program through a grant from FEMA, has created a Potential Hurricane Inundation Map (PHIM) series that can be accessed online. Release of an online mapping tool, accessible through the Maine Geological Survey?s website, coincides with today?s date ? September 10 - the statistical peak of the Atlantic Basin?s hurricane season, which runs from June 1 to November 30.

The PHIMs show areas along the Maine coastline that might potentially be flooded by storm tides (the combination of a predicted tide and storm surge) under scenarios of Category 1 or 2 storms making landfall at either mean tide or mean high tide. The maps also show an additional 20% potential flooding uncertainty band associated with each scenario. The PHIMs can be used to improve emergency preparedness and planning by helping identify vulnerable critical public infrastructure at the local, county, and state level. The maps were created using the National Hurricane Center?s Sea, Lake, and Overland Surges from Hurricanes (SLOSH) model in addition to newly available highly accurate topographic data of Maine?s coastline.

?This is an excellent planning tool for local, regional and state emergency management professionals,? said Governor Paul R. LePage. ?The ability to predict which parts of our coastline might be inundated by storm tides associated with hurricanes can help Maine communities plan for and respond to hurricane-related emergencies. This new mapping tool has the potential to save lives and limit property damage.?

Commissioner Walt Whitcomb stressed that PHIM maps are the latest example of the type of work DACF scientists and educators do every day to plan for weather impact on our natural resources. ?The Maine Geological Survey has worked hard with our partners to create a useful planning tool that will be helpful at all levels? he said. ?PHIM is designed specifically for emergency management and planning, but highlights how the DACF is using cutting-edge technologies to help Maine communities meet the challenges of weather on natural resource management.?

Although the threat in Maine is generally small compared with southern New England states, hurricanes can and do happen in Maine. Luckily, Maine sits at the ?tail end? of tropical events. Due to the colder Gulf of Maine waters and its geographic location, most hurricanes that cross into Maine have made landfall elsewhere and either weakened to tropical storms or become extra-tropical. Since records were started in 1842, only five hurricanes have made landfall along the Maine coastline as either Category 1 or 2 storms; the most recent was Hurricane Bob in 1991. However, many of these events have still caused extensive damage, injuries and even deaths. It is the responsibility of local, regional and state governments to be prepared for and respond to these events, and the PHIM series is meant to help all levels of government achieve that goal.

For more information, see the Maine Geological Survey?s Potential Hurricane Inundation Map website at: http://www.maine.gov/dacf/mgs/hazards/phim

Potential Hurricane Inundation Map links:

PHIM F.A.Q. page: http://www.maine.gov/dacf/mgs/hazards/phim/faq.htm National Hurricane Center: http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/ National Hurricane Program: http://www.fema.gov/region-iii-mitigation-division/national-hurricane-program Sea, Lake, and Overland Surges from Hurricanes (SLOSH): http://www.nhc.noaa.gov/surge/slosh.php NOAA Historical Hurricane Tracking Tool: http://csc.noaa.gov/hurricanes/#

Important Note: Potential Hurricane Inundation Maps are emergency preparedness and planning documents for events that don?t have occurrence probabilities. They are not intended to be used for regulatory or insurance purposes.