Storm Surge Elevation Mapping for Hurricane Evacuation Restudy

As a part of the New York State Hurricane Evacuation Restudy, the New York State Emergency Management Office needed a way to determine the storm surge elevations resulting from Category 1, 2, 3, and 4 hurricanes. PBS&J was tasked with composing a surge inundation map set of New York City for submittal to local, state, and federal agencies. This atlas defined the surge boundaries within the Brooklyn, Queens, Manhattan, Bronx, and Staten Island boroughs.

Surge inundations were calculated using digital elevation and the National Weather Service's Sea, Lake, and Overland Surges from Hurricanes (SLOSH) models. Using SLOSH, surge heights were calculated for set locations throughout the city for a number of category 1 - 4 hurricanes, based on two storm directions and two tide levels. The maximum values obtained for all hurricanes of a particular category were then transferred to a 1:24,000 base map (contour interval 10 feet) to delineate surge zones. New York state and local agencies will refer to the maps when reconstructing hurricane evacuation zones and considering plans for hurricane evacuation routing.