Prioritisation Recommendation Mapping (PrioReMap): A method for supporting relief coordination in flood disaster response

Abstract

To effectively coordinate the response to a flood disaster, decision-makers have to prioritise areas that are in most urgent need of assistance. This prioritisation often has to be carried out under time pressure and on the basis of incomplete information, creating a high cognitive load for decision-makers. Methods that integrate Bayesian networks into GIS to draw spatial inference can inform this prioritisation process. However, existing approaches are not equipped to address the time pressure and unclear information-scape that is typical for a flood disaster. In this work, we present a novel spatial inference method for area prioritisation that is designed to address these time and information constraints. The core of this method is a GIS-informed Bayesian network, integrated into an expected loss framework, that can be set up during the preparation phase. The method can then quickly provide area prioritisation recommendations for disaster relief, which has the potential to support decisions-makers during the response phase. In this way, our method provides a means of shifting some of the most time-consuming aspects of the decision-making process from the time-critical disaster response phase to the less critical preparation phase. To illustrate how our method can support rapid and transparent area prioritisation, we present a case study of an extreme flood scenario in Cologne, Germany.