Reconnaissance Workshop and Field Exercise

Reconnaissance Training Workshop

The Reconnaissance Training Workshop on Tuesday, April 9 will provide instruction in post-earthquake reconnaissance tools and techniques, such as documenting perishable data on geological, geotechnical, structural, and lifelines impacts; utilizing instruments, survey tools, and mobile-based software apps in the field; understanding resources for sharing, publishing, and archiving reconnaissance data; and dealing with the methodological and ethical dimensions of rapid-response research in post-disaster contexts. The workshop will feature presentations from key organizations in the reconnaissance community as well as a presentation from the Washington Geological Survey introducing the multi-hazard Washington Geologic Hazards Clearinghouse, a new framework for coordinating reconnaissance following earthquake, tsunami, landslide, and volcano events impacting Washington State.

9:00 AM-3:30 PM, Redwood Room, Sheraton Grand Seattle

9:05-9:10 AM: Welcome and Overview

  • Elizabeth Angell, EERI


9:10-10:00 AM Roundtable: Introduction to the Disaster Reconnaissance Community

  • Mike Mieler, EERI-LFE

  • David Frost, GEER

  • Selim Gunay, StEER

  • Joe Wartman, NHERI-RAPID

  • Lori Peek, SSEER and CONVERGE

  • Mehmet Celebi, USGS

10:00-10:30 AM: Introduction to the Washington Geologic Hazards Clearinghouse Plan 

  • Corina Allen, WGS

10:30-10:45 AM: Break

10:45-12:00 AM: Field Readiness: Ethical and Practical Concerns

  • Lori Peek, Natural Hazards Center/SSEER 
  • David Frost, GEER 

  • Maximilian Dixon, WA EMD


12:00 PM-1:00 PM: Lunch

1:00-1:30: Tools for Friday’s Exercise

  • Sheelagh McCarthy and Susan Schnur, WGS


1:30-3:30 PM: How to Conduct Reconnaissance: Case Studies and Techniques

  • Jeff Berman, RAPID

  • Steve Angster, USGS

  • Brad Wham, University of Colorado

  • Rick Wilson, California Geological Survey


Reconnaissance Field Exercise

On Friday, April 12, participants will have the opportunity to practice these skills in a full-day Reconnaissance Field Exercise. EERI is partnering with the Washington Geological Survey to conduct the first in-person exercise of the new Washington Geologic Hazards Clearinghouse Plan. The exercise will be based on the scenario of a M7.5 earthquake on the Seattle Fault, and will incorporate projected impacts based on new research from USGS, WGS, and local partners, including the Seattle Office of Emergency Management and Washington State Department of Emergency Management. The exercise will begin at the Sheraton Grand with a morning briefing and the activation of the Clearinghouse. After the briefing, interdisciplinary field teams of participants will check-out from the clearinghouse and deploy. Each team will then visit a number of stops on a planned route around downtown Seattle, along the waterfront, and in the Pioneer Square neighborhood. In the field, participants will have the opportunity to collect reconnaissance data, including ground deformation, debris deposits, and tsunami inundation, and mock impacts to URM and retrofitted buildings as well as to lifeline systems. Some teams will take the ferry to Bainbridge Island and back to learn more about the deformation front, while others will tour the Seattle Emergency Operations Center and/or retrofitted URM buildings in Pioneer Square. All teams will also visit a waterfront station hosted by the NHERI-RAPID facility for a demonstration of reconnaissance equipment including Lidar scanners and drone cameras. After lunch, teams will return to clearinghouse headquarters at the Sheraton Grand for a debrief session with data sharing and live map visualization, and a happy hour.

8:30 AM-5:00 PM, Clearinghouse HQ: Sheraton Grand Seattle, Grand Ballroom A

8:30-11:00: Exercise Introduction and Scenario Presentations 

  • Welcome and Introductions (Elizabeth Angell, EERI; Corina Allen, WGS; Megan Anderson, WGS)
  • Scenario Overview and Tectonic Setting (Corina Allen, WGS; Steve Angster, USGS; Ian Stone, USGS; Gabe Lotto, UW)
  • Emergency Management Status
    (Maximilian Dixon, WA EMD; T.J. McDonald, Seattle OEM)
  • Building Tagging Process
    (Joyce Lem, WASAFE; Elenka Jarolimek, SCDI)
  • Clearinghouse Overview (Corina Allen, WGS; Megan Anderson, WGS; Sheelagh McCarthy, WGS)
  • Field Preparedness (Corina Allen, WGS and Megan Anderson, WGS)
  • Q&A and Checkout of Field Teams

11:00-3:00: Field Exercise and Lunch

3:00-5:00: Afternoon Debrief and Happy Hour 

  • Debrief and Presentation of Live Data Map (Sheelagh McCarthy, Corina Allen, Megan Anderson)
  • Discussion and Happy Hour