ABSTRACT
This chapter provides the building blocks of good emergency planning research and investigation using geographic information system (GIS), from key concepts to data considerations to common techniques and methods. It illustrates the utility of GIS for emergency planning through examples that emphasise the application, rather than individual techniques or data inputs. The chapter discusses the use of GIS in both applied and academic research in emergency management and planning is vast and growing. It highlights some main types and characteristics of data needed for GIS applications in emergency management. The chapter provides an example of a tool developed by the United States Geological Survey (USGS). A federal agency, the USGS is responsible for information, data and policy relating to natural resources and the environment, but also natural hazards. A small but growing source of information in emergency planning, especially response and recovery, comes from social media and crowd-sourced data.
