Hazard Impact Framework: Developing Multi-Hazard Impact Models

When a weather or natural hazard event is predicted, providing meaningful information on the impact of the event to the public, emergency responders and governments is essential. Knowing what could potentially happen leads to improved preparedness and mitigation strategies to reduce these impacts. The Natural Hazards Partnership (NHP) is leading the way in moving from a hazard-based to a more impact-based approach to the assessment of natural hazard risk and impacts. Through the NHP a series of Hazard Impact Models (HIMs) are being developed, each focusing on one hazard. These HIMs combine partners’ data and expertise to identify the impacts resulting from a range of natural hazards. A key ambition is to combine these individual HIMs to create Multi-Hazard Impact Models to enable assessment of and prepare responders for multi-hazard scenarios. To do this the HIMs needs to be interoperable; therefore the Hazard Impact Framework (HIF) was developed. The HIF provides a common and consistent approach to modelling and forecasting natural hazard impacts including definitions and common concepts in impact modelling. It also provides standard guidelines and, where necessary, stricter protocols for developing Hazard Impact Models. The presentation will introduce HIMs and showcase key conceptual, procedural and technical elements of the first edition of the HIF, which is freely available on the NHP website. It will also discuss one of the next challenges: how to communicate Multi-Hazard Impact Model information in a useable, used and useful way.