Mapping important infrastructure could aid emergency response after hurricanes

In the fall of 2024, Hurricane Helene made landfall in the southeastern U.S., later downgrading to a tropical storm causing strong winds, flooding and major destruction throughout Appalachia. Now, researchers and public health officials in ACS’ Environmental Science & Technology Letters provide a debrief about how their mapping of key locations, including private wells, septic systems and service facilities, helped distribute disaster relief in North Carolina — a part of Appalachia hit particularly hard by the hurricane.

“Hurricane Helene brought unprecedented destruction to Western NC,” says Larry Michael, a co-author of the study and the State Environmental Health Director and Section Chief, NCDHHS NC Division of Public Health. “Access to real-time impact data was critical — it allowed our team to prioritize needs and make smarter, faster decisions to keep people safe and ensure their health and well-being.”

The speed of emergency response after natural disasters is critical for saving lives and infrastructure. And local, state and federal agencies that provide immediate support decide where and when aid should be distributed. For rural locations, public health officials help to disinfect well water and repair wells and septic systems. But to focus their relief efforts, they need to know where these structures are located and whether they have been impacted during a disaster. So, for the past decade, Kelsey Pieper and an interdisciplinary team of researchers and public health officials have been developing a user-friendly mapping system that provides county- and regional-level information on private wells that provide drinking water. After Hurricane Helene impacted Western North Carolina, sometimes referred to as WNC, the team shared the mapping system in an online portal, giving agencies near real-time information on potential flooding impacts.

Initially, the mapping system focused on the locations of private wells in 25 WNC counties. And with feedback from local health officials, it was expanded to include septic systems and other important community locations such as restaurants, gas stations, schools and fire stations. The team’s mapping estimated that after one day of unprecedented precipitation from Hurricane Helene (by September 28, 2024), flooding impacted:

• Almost one-quarter of the 359,000 private wells that were within 110 yards (100 meters) of flooded areas.
• More than a quarter of the 34,000 businesses and 500 fire stations that were within 110 yards (100 meters) of flooded areas.
• Up to 1,100 restaurants, the highest number among service facilities, followed by gas stations and grocery stores.

In the days and weeks after the disaster, the team’s online portal was viewed by hundreds of users. Although outdated datasets could have introduced some uncertainty, the mapping system’s focus on private wells, septic infrastructure, and food and service facilities provided actionable information not available elsewhere during the initial emergency response. The researchers say that these types of products need to be developed ahead of disasters so that health department staff can respond with the appropriate services for their communities.

The authors acknowledge funding from the NASA Water Resources Program, the NASA Precipitation Measurement Mission, the NASA Surface Water and Ocean Topography Mission, and a U.S. National Science Foundation Strengthening American Infrastructure grant.

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