Abstract

GIS Response to a Massive Fertilizer Plant Explosion in Residential Ar
Track: Disaster and Emergency Management
Authors: Tracy L. Haywood

In April 2013 a massive fertilizer plant explosion occurred in a rural Texas community, killing 15 individuals and injuring over 300. GIS assisted in planning a community assessment and an epidemiologic investigation. GIS was used to identify assessment areas, residents, damaged buildings, location of individuals at the time of the explosion, health facilities receiving injured patients, and spatially analyze the types of injuries by distance from the blast epicenter.