INLET: ImageCat's Internet-based Loss Estimation Tool

Overview

Inlet (Internet-based Loss Estimation Tool) is the first online real-time loss estimation system available to the emergency management and response community within California. In the event of a significant earthquake, USGS ShakeCast notifications call Inlet routines that estimate losses within a minute after an event. INLET incorporates extensive GIS databases and uses damage functions simplified from FEMA's HAZUS® software. Inlet currently estimates building damage and casualties. Funded by a National Science Foundation grant through the University of California, Irvine, Inlet was originally designed as a simulation tool for researchers to model the impact that disaster awareness and route familiarity can have on traffic congestion and evacuation time. As a software artifact of the research efforts, Inlet stands alone as a user-friendly loss estimation tool that can be customized for federal, state, and local agencies.

Features

• Real-time ShakeCast alerts trigger calculations without user intervention
• Real-time estimates of building damage per census tract by occupancy
• Real-time estimates of injuries by severity, and casualties by census tract
• Estimates damage highway bridges, extensible to critical facilities and portfolios
• Computes losses from custom scenarios or USGS ShakeMap scenarios Can be used to prioritize mitigation, for planning scenarios, or for rapid response
• Mapping using Microsoft Virtual Earth