Challenge
Following the 2011 South East Queensland floods, new state legislation required Sunshine Coast Regional Council (SCRC) to produce detailed plans on how to safely evacuate its 300,000+ residents in the event of a cyclone or flood. These plans needed to take into consideration areas of highest risk and the logistics involved in moving large numbers of people via a constrained road network. Two products were required: a set of maps for the Emergency Coordination Centre with detailed statistics, and a simpler map for public education.
Solution
By utilising an array of data sources, including flood models, waterway networks, demographical data, road hierarchies, cadastre and ratepayer information, GIS People’s geospatial consultancy team created a series of interactive A3 PDF maps that allowed users to see the region on a single map, then click down through any area to suburb scale. Individual evacuation zones were defined by risk level. The maps included statistics on number of persons, how many with dogs, how many without a car and travel times to safety, and the optimal direction of travel for main roads, location of evacuation centres and optimal traffic control locations.
Outcomes
- A set of 300+ interactively linked, A3 PDF detailed evacuation maps including statistics.
- A set of 300+ interactively linked, A4 PDF maps optimised for public download.
- The first South East Queensland Council to complete and publish these required maps.
- Recognised by Emergency Management Queensland as the best example of evacuation maps.
- A better prepared and educated population.
